As the Tea Party Movement ramps up for what promises to be a very big day on April 15, it seems things got a little out of hand in London (today? yesterday? depends on where you are or were). What are we supposed to make of this? Obviously this demonstration was a hodge-podge of oldsters worrying about the impact of low interest rates on their retirement and anarchists raging that capitalism is dead in England. (Was it alive?)
Anyway, what strikes me, in brief beore I get into the car for the office, is that folks in the Tea Party Movement should start thinking about some ideas. What solutions are they proposing? Being the anti-Obama will work for a while, but at some point you throw some concrete ideas on the table – or many ideas.
“What solutions are they proposing?”
The solutions are not all that complicated. We need to drop taxes on both higher income individuals and corporations and severely cut back on government spending. And yes, I concede that I am being a bit over simplistic—but not by much. We need to abandon the mindset that the political class “must do something.” Sometimes it is better if our elected officials do nothing! The Republican Herbert Hoover started this idiocy. He perceived himself as the great engineer who had to essential become the CEO of America’s economy. Franklin D. Roosevelt was just Hoover on steroids. It would behoove us if we returned to the era of Calvin Coolidge.
Limited government, lower taxes, “drill-baby-drill” – we could go on all day. All of these positions are intrinsically anti-Obama, simply by virtue of his opposition to them. The first two are proven methods to protect individual liberty and actually increase tax revenues, and the third would simultaneously create an economic boom and improve our national security by making our energy supply self-sustaining.
A serious, concerted pushback against global warming hysteria (just a device used by the statists in an epic power grab), as well as the likes of ACORN (ditto) wouldn’t hurt either.
“What solutions are they proposing?”
I propose:
“Less Spending + Lower Taxes = More Liberty and Greater Prosperity”
It’s short, accurate and fits nicely on a sign to carry at the Tea Party on April 15.
General goals are fine, but any such victories will only last until the pendulum swings the other way. There needs to some sort of structural change, probably one or more constitutional amendments. The main things that should be done are:
(1) Put an upper limit, as a percentage, that any person can be taxed, such as no more than 15% of income from whatever source.
(2) Put an upper limit, as a percentage of GDP, that the government can spend in any given year, and put mechanisms in place that don’t involve the Federal Government having to “police” itself.
Burn coal and dedicate the sacred fire to that great sage Freeman Dyson.
Hmmmmm … 4000 unruly protesters in England are international news; 4000 Tea Party protesters, presumably well behaved, in Orlando FL rate barely a mention in U.S. media.
Tcobb, I like your idea generally, but I don’t think it’s feasible to put an upper limit on tax rates. Occasional emergencies like wars require lots of quick cash. The amendments I would like to see are, first, that all bills be of a single subject. That way, everything has to be defended on its own merits and if it can’t be, it doesn’t pass. No larding up the “must pass” bill with a lot of “can’t pass” wish lists.
Second, a sunset provision on all bills so they have to be defended from time to time.
We campaign on a repeal of the porkulus bill.
We promise to get the gov ‘t out of the bailout business.
We become the party of fiscal responsibility.
We get government out of the morals/values business and concentrate on national security and increasing individual wealth while nmaking sure we don’t leave ourselves open to ‘helping the fatcats’ charges.
We promise to balance the budget within a reasonable amount of time.
We find an exit strategy in Afghanistan and fight the urge to be the world’s policeman.
We promise energy independence from middle eastern oil by using nuclear clean coal and exploiting domestic oil sources and natural gas, solar, wind, ‘everything-and give a deadline of 10 years to accomplish it like Jfk did with the moon race.