When vision meets budgetary reality

Sometimes we can’t pay for what we want and should do. Then what happens? Reality.

First the reality, then the vision.

We Americans generate trillions of dollars in federal, state, and local tax monies whom our voted upon leaders distribute according to their priorities. In the last few decades many Americans and their governments have avoided raising taxes even more to pay the promised obligations by using borrowing as a method, as well as counting on rising property taxes. It has worked, though the impacts on future generations, and our national sovereignty, is seldom discussed. The scale and trend of things is most alarming. If the federal government raises around three trillion dollars a year in taxes to spend, it also borrows about one or two trillion more dollars a year (depending on which studies you use) on top of the taxes to pay the bills that we elected them for, it seems. Today about one-third of the borrowing is from foreigners who loan us the money we “need” to survive on, as in meet our obligations, which we vote on and expect. This is the reality.

Depending on the politician running for elected positions, many just promise their vision for our future, and offer to finance it with more borrowing since the tax income is already tapped out. Depending on the bureaucracy, competing for budget income as the main mission is almost as bad. The principle is about the same. Good ideas that are sold convincingly have always been funded up until today’s times. The catch is that borrowing has been a 'free lunch" of sorts in making this happen. And there are no "free lunches".

The Defense Department is the most shining good example of developing strategies after much in-fighting (since there is more than one good way to get things done), and then attempting to man and fund the decisions of the elders. Also, it is typical in that financing these good ideas is seldom part of the public discussion during the development of a strategy that benefits we Americans. Never do we ever hear discussion of the equivalent of WWII War Bond Drives to generate the income to help finance them. Call them Peace Bond Drives today that focus on borrowing American's money vice foreign money. It just has not happened. Apply this idea to the other departments of the federal government, and the picture is “depressing”.

This author suggests the obvious realities going on today. Politicians and bureaucrats at all levels are doing their best to balance benefits with basic government obligations. And slowly and surely, benefits seem to be trumping basic government responsibilities like police and fire security, road and pot hole maintenance. Poison foods and medicines from China are a good example. Vision is going under due to budgetary reality. This is especially alarming at the local levels where government employee benefits like retirements can trump local security and schooling for kids.

The most “known” loan company that “rates” is Moody’s. They give America about nine years before we revert to older times when no one in their right mind would loan us money…hence War Bond Drives, or hopefully some new variation in our future.

Are we ready as Americans to go “cold turkey”. Are we ready to “get ready”? How bad will we “rail” against the imposition of reality, as in pay our way? Maybe the status quo will continue as is? The point is we Americans are in a good and unique position to change how we balance vision with reality. Hopefully our votes will kick in before reality later makes it happen anyway. When will political parties and their annointed politicians even begin to discuss this as votable issues?