Oh no...I think I may be a socialist.

I'm fully aware that the title for this blog entry will squash any hopes of a future political career. I don't have any intention of wading through the political cesspool on a daily basis, but 'tis the season. So, with my hip waders on, here I go.

I have been quite perturbed with the political discussion involving taxes, government programs, and the libertarian leanings of the Republican Party Presidential candidates during the primary/caucus season. Sound bite after sound bite rails against taxes and government spending. Our potential candidates from the GOP promise that Capitalism and the free market will sort out our problems with health care, the financial sector of the economy, and the declining median income of the middle class.

I could go on for paragraphs about how taxes support the infrastructure that we have come to depend on. I could point out that our increasing reliance on gambling revenue to prop up our states' economies is enormously less efficient at supporting infrastructure than just taking that same money as a tax. I could submit that if we took all of the money that we have pumped into Iraq over the last five years and put that same money into shoring up security here in the US, we'd be safer from terrorist attacks. But I'll leave those topics for another day.

I'm mostly upset lately at the "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" mentality that is so pervasive in our culture. By most accounts I'm currently living the American dream. I have a wife and three kids. We live in a cozy little cottage on two acres in the country. I own and operate a small business. Did I get here by working hard? Absolutely. Did I get here with a lot of good luck along the way? Of course. Those who deny that good fortune plays a large role in any success story are kidding themselves.

So, here is my point in all of this rambling. Those of us who reap the benefits of hard work and good fortune have a responsibility to give back. The government is not renowned for its efficiency at delivering services to needy citizens, but they fill a need that no other organization is equipped to fulfill. Unfortunately, these necessary programs need tax dollars.

I guess that's my campaign platform: raise taxes by re-establishing a truly progressive tax system (mainly through the elimination of loopholes for the upper class). I don't suppose I'll ever be elected, but I'd certainly tell the truth.

-Gary