Worried Libertarian
Posted: February 20, 2012 - 8:02pm I am a registered Libertarian and am afraid for our country. Our Constitution was written to set limits on the size and scope of our government. I love my country. It is the government I am afraid of. It is my contention that our government, and its spending programs if left unchecked, will be the downfall of our democracy and our country as we know it.
I feel our country has reached a tipping point in history and is trending toward self-destruction. I watch the two major political parties’ core voters trending in opposite directions as a percentage of the electorate.
The base of the Republican Party is dying. The base of the party consists of wealthier white people, religious folks and conservatives. Their numbers are declining because their birth rate is less than their death rate.
In contrast, the base of the Democratic Party is growing as a share of the electorate. Poorer white people, Hispanic, Latino, African-American and Asian populations are steadily growing in numbers due to immigration and higher birth rates. Demographically, these groups tend to vote as Democrats. As a general rule, the base of the Democratic Party relies on government services, government benefits and government jobs. Almost half of all Americans live in a household that receives some sort of government subsidy — Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, unemployment insurance, welfare payments, disability checks, farm subsidies, food stamps and now even cellphone — creating a dependent class of people. Once someone is receiving a government payment, it is nearly impossible politically to take it away. The receivers of benefits are now beginning to outnumber the producers.
In this current economy, the number of taxpayers is shrinking and the number of tax consumers is growing. Forty-six percent of all Americans pay no federal tax yet consume the majority of federal services. The national debt of more than $15 trillion equals our annual GDP, which means we now spend more than we produce. Federal spending has baseline budgets that automatically increase each year for each department, regardless of a department’s need for an increase.
Government programs were intended to provide a safety net for the poor. Instead, they are evolving into a net to snare, trap and enslave our population. If these trends continue unabated, our government and its programs will be the cancer that consumes our freedom and liberty and kills the pursuit of happiness for our grandchildren. Is a limited government even possible to achieve anymore?
JOE WEIR,
Topeka
The base of the Republican Party is dying. The base of the party consists of wealthier white people, religious folks and conservatives. Their numbers are declining because their birth rate is less than their death rate.
In contrast, the base of the Democratic Party is growing as a share of the electorate. Poorer white people, Hispanic, Latino, African-American and Asian populations are steadily growing in numbers due to immigration and higher birth rates. Demographically, these groups tend to vote as Democrats. As a general rule, the base of the Democratic Party relies on government services, government benefits and government jobs. Almost half of all Americans live in a household that receives some sort of government subsidy — Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, unemployment insurance, welfare payments, disability checks, farm subsidies, food stamps and now even cellphone — creating a dependent class of people. Once someone is receiving a government payment, it is nearly impossible politically to take it away. The receivers of benefits are now beginning to outnumber the producers.
In this current economy, the number of taxpayers is shrinking and the number of tax consumers is growing. Forty-six percent of all Americans pay no federal tax yet consume the majority of federal services. The national debt of more than $15 trillion equals our annual GDP, which means we now spend more than we produce. Federal spending has baseline budgets that automatically increase each year for each department, regardless of a department’s need for an increase.
Government programs were intended to provide a safety net for the poor. Instead, they are evolving into a net to snare, trap and enslave our population. If these trends continue unabated, our government and its programs will be the cancer that consumes our freedom and liberty and kills the pursuit of happiness for our grandchildren. Is a limited government even possible to achieve anymore?
JOE WEIR,
Topeka
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