Jan
27
2009
I write this post today with the hope of understanding exactly why socialism seems so appealing to so many people today. Is it that other people’s money is simply better than our own? (Lord knows my bank account ain’t too pretty…) Or maybe it is because the upper class people in our society have attained a reputation for being particularly low down and dirty. Whatever the reason, I just can’t bring myself to believe that “taxing the rich” equates to anything but legalized theft.
Maybe I’m just a dumb conservative, but isn’t this the land of equality, where the color of your skin, and your religious preference shouldn’t influence your chances for success? It seems incongruous to me that we should work so hard to ensure equality among ourselves, but then look the other way when we decide how much of our incomes we should have to give away to an already top-heavy government. There is no logical justification for taking 70% of a rich man’s money (as Carter did) while taking 15% of a lower-middle classman’s. I can only think of greed and envy as motives, which is perhaps why I’m still against the idea.
Here in America, our greatest hope, and even our foundation, is our freedom. The sky is no longer a limit to the things we can achieve if we set our minds to do so. But if we continue down this path, we will do nothing but break the wings of anyone who dares to try. Equality doesn’t mean that we all have to be chopped down to the same level; it means that we all have the same freedom to pursue our ambitions, and it’s up to us to come up with the determination and the know-how.
Please, share your thoughts on the issue and, if you’re a hardcore tax-the-rich liberal, help me understand your justification for your beliefs.
