Capitalism And Socialism Cannot Coexist Indefinitely

I believe the problem with our government is that it is trying to utilize two different economic systems that mix together about as well as oil and water: capitalism and socialism. We claim that we are a capitalist nation with an economic system based on free enterprise and supply and demand. Yet, the government’s excessive taxation of both business and individuals is reducing the amount of capital to be invested in the free market system and spent on products. And it’s not just the obvious taxes that we all can see, such as income tax and sales tax, etc. It is also the hidden taxes imposed on us in the form of fees and required expenditures such as auto insurance and annual auto inspections. Now, I don’t deny the necessity of these things, but the fact remains that these mandated expenditures leave us with less discretionary capital upon which a capitalist economic system requires to function properly.
I am not here as an advocate of either economic system. Both have their advantages and disadvantages. My sole purpose here is to challenge the government to choose one or the other. If our government feels the need to tax and regulate it’s citizenry to the burdensome degree that it presently is, then I suggest it goes ahead and confiscates the remainder of our earnings and reserves and provide us with housing, food, clothing and medical care. After all, if all of our necessities are met, we really don’t need much discretionary cash. Maybe the government can give everyone an allowance based on our earnings that we can use as we see fit.
I question how much the politicians would care for that idea since in the long run it would probably increase their accountability to us and allow them less freedom to use our money on their own lavish lifestyle with their high annual income (a rate of pay that the average citizen will never achieve), and their annual cost of living increases ( an increase that the average citizen does not get, or if they do it is usually surpassed by the increase in their medical insurance premiums), and their nice perks. No wonder most politicians have lost sight of the plight of the average citizen. Yes, it’s only lip service when they tell us they understand our situation. How can they? They are so far removed from us in so many ways. In my younger days, I used to believe that at least individually, most politicians really had our best interest at heart, but they were limited in what they could do by the deeply entrenched political machine. When I would get in debates with friends and family members over political issues, I would defend the politicians and explain that they were doing the best they could within the parameters of a system that admittedly runs pretty slowly and with many roadblocks. In retrospect, I realize that my friends were much more enlightened than I was. My naivete back then is now quite apparent and I have thankfully come to join the ranks of those who are not so easily deceived.
I believe if individual politicians really do have our best interest at heart, there are a few things they can do as a token to us that they are sincere. And these things do not require committees and hearings and votes. They can refuse to accept the many perks that come along with their exorbitant salaries, like a pension plan that many corporate officials don’t even get. They can also refuse to accept pay increases and even give back some of their pay to the people they robbed it from. Folks, it’s not going to happen.
So, if the government does not want to care for us from cradle to grave, then I believe congress should seriously cut taxes and stop their uncontrolled spending and let the free enterprise system work.
As it is now, neither system is utilized to it’s full potential and we suffer for it. Big businesses pass the burden of government taxation and fees onto us in the form of higher prices, job layoffs due to downsizing and restructuring, or even completely closing down or moving to other countries in search of cheaper labor. And small businesses which can no longer compete, due to the governments burdensome taxation and the competition of their larger counterparts end up selling out to those huge conglomerates which then corner the market because they have the financial resources to buy congresspersons. This type of free enterprise also fosters a sense of dehumanization because it reduces people to objects instead of human beings. The small, local business owner who knew his or her clientele personally and treated them like a friend has now been replaced by large corporations which do not offer that kind of personal service.
The final result of a government that tries to function with these two mutually exclusive economic systems is that the average American, is stuck in a position where it is very difficult to attain any real financial progress due to such burdensome taxation and fees, yet most of us still earn too much to qualify for any financial assistance from
the government. This leaves us with a feeling of resentment toward a government that robs us of so much of our livelihood and then leaves us to struggle to make ends meet. Then to add insult to injury, the rising cost of products due to the effort of businesses to recover from their own victimization from government plundering leaves us struggling even more to survive. In addition to resentment, many are left with a feeling of despair and hopelessness.
Now, all this is not to give the impression that I am completely against any type of regulation on business. In fact, in some ways I think there isn’t enough. For example, I recall the days when radio station ownership was much more limited than it is today. With deregulation, corporate radio has pretty much put small locally owned radio stations on the endangered species list. The result is that radio programming has lost much of it’s creativity and distinctness and the format choices offered to listeners in any given market are severely reduced. The same applies to many other types of industry in America. But, while regulation and ownership restrictions in a quantitative sense are good and promote competition and higher levels of consumer choice, regulation need not be accompanied by such high taxation and fees. It’s the high level of taxation and mandated expenditures enforced on business that stifles free enterprise and leads to the decrease in small business and the increase in large mega corporations with the resulting dehumanizing effect mentioned above.
So, while small businesses struggle to survive and many fail, government grows and continues to be insulated and indifferent to the plight of the rest of us. Your congressperson is not concerned about the rising cost of gasoline or food products. They will always be able to afford what they want because they can always increase our taxes and fees to sustain their standard of living. I doubt that anyone in congress has ever had to cancel a vacation in order to be able to pay a utility bill or buy groceries. I’m also quite sure they never had to choose between buying food or paying for medical care. Tell me, how can we honestly believe they have our best interest at heart?
Again, my challenge stands. Mr. and Ms. Congressperson, either assume responsibility of providing for all our basic necessities, including medical care and employment, or refrain from taxing us at such a high and unfair rate and reduce government spending. Learn to control your spending like the rest of us have to do! You know us. We are the people you were elected to serve. Well choose the form of service you plan to provide us and choose now. Either provide completely for us with the money you have taken from us, or let us keep our money and care for ourselves without your interference! I for one hold you in contempt as I imagine Thomas Jefferson himself would if he were living today.