Taxing

 So, here's the deal: I don't really want a tax cut. I understand this is a big deal for a lot of people, getting a reprieve from paying the government any part of the money for which we all work so hard. 

Most of us are working hard. And ironically enough, it's those who tend not to do the traditional "hard work" of building things and breaking things and putting things back together who are the ones who get the attention when it comes to things like tax breaks. Economists will tell you that's because the percentages of the paychecks these laborers make the big bucks that can help pay for battleships and school lunches and the like. It's the billionaires who can not only afford to pay lawyers and accountants to starve off those nasty tax bills, but can also expect special treatment from the powers that be to lighten their "fair share." 

Meanwhile, you've got folks like me who have found themselves after a few decades in the workforce, trying to figure out where I will land once I decide to stop working. Did I save enough with all my tax-deferred accounts so that I can live comfortably into my even older age? Will there be enough tucked away in programs like Medicaid and Social Security to keep me from having to find a job that I can do in my golden years to pay for the lavish lifestyle that would allow me to enjoy three meals a day for me and my wife, perhaps on some sort of alternating basis. 

The thing is, I continue to vote for things that cost money. I vote, essentially, to raise my own taxes. I am not voting to lighten my burden to the community. It could be that my career in public education has made me ever more convinced that providing for those who have less is what we all need. Battleships. School lunches. Life. LIberty. The pursuit of happiness. It's not tax free.