Beware The True Super Predators- Net Tax Consumers

 

 by Joe Siano

 

Joe Biden infamously labeled young, urban men as “super predators”. 

I submit that no matter how many times you may have been mugged, robbed or vandalized, your loss was minimal compared to the damage inflicted by Net Tax Consumers.   These are the true super predators.

Who are they?

This explains.  The entire populace typically falls into either one of two buckets:

1.      Net Tax Payers

2.      Net Tax Consumers

For the sake of argument let’s agree that everyone receives some “benefit” from government such as roads, parks, police protection, courts-of-law and defense against foreign invaders.  Likewise, a great many of us pay taxes – including federal, state and local income taxes, payroll taxes, capital gains taxes not to mention sales taxes and innumerable fees on items like your phone and cable bills.  

At issue are those who receive more, significantly more, in monetary payments from the government than they contribute.  Theses are Net Tax Consumers.  They live off the taxes that others pay.

This phenomena is not news.  Over a century and a half ago,  back, John C. Calhoun observed a:

“…divide the community into two great classes:

one consisting of those who, in reality, pay the taxes and, of course, bear exclusively the burden of supporting the government; and

the other, of those who are recipients of their proceeds through disbursements, who are, in fact, supported by the government;

or in fewer words, to divide into tax-payers and tax-consumers. ...

The effect ... is to enrich; and strengthen the one, and impoverish and weaken the other.”

 Unless they have significant sources of income beyond their government paycheck, most city, county, state and federal employees are Net Tax Consumers.   

In addition to public sector employees, the Tax Consumer pool is comprised of a vast number of folks in the supposedly private and non-profit segments. One or all of these groups may qualify as Net Tax Consumers:

·        Defense industry executives and workers

·        Government consultants and contractors

·        Research grant recipients

·        Subsidized artists and performers

·        College administrators and professors

·        Those living on entitlements and public assistance

The classic Lockean/Jeffersonian model was that governments were instituted to “secure” our God-given and “unalienable Rights”.  Its citizens were customers, purchasing protection from government.     

In the modern nation state the script is flipped.  According to Davidson & Rees-Mogg, the State aims to make all citizens feel that they are employees – stakeholders with skin in the skin in the game.

The Governing Class would like us to feel that we are all part of the Milo Minderbinder syndicate – “everyone has a share”.  But we are not.  Some profit while others pay.

My proposal is simple – disqualify Net Tax Consumers from voting.

To start with, the Downs Paradox holds “that for a rational, self-interested voter, the costs of voting will normally exceed the expected benefits. Because the chance of exercising the pivotal vote is minuscule compared to any realistic estimate of the private individual benefits of the different possible outcomes, the expected benefits of voting are less than the costs.” 

Simply put, self-interested voter must invest precious time and energy to understand all that Candidate A proposes versus Candidate B and how that affects him.  And even if this voter figures out who is most likely benefit him, the likelihood that his vote will make any difference is near zero.  Finally, there is no guarantee that his favored candidates will deliver on his promises once elected.

Thus, most voters vote for personality or empty platitudes such as “equality”, “justice”, ‘jobs”, “hope”, “change”.  Or they vote for their traditional favorites – Democrats or Republicans – with a hardly a concern for the underlying issues.  Its no better than rooting for your favorite sports team.

Tax Consumers rise above this.  They vote for the guys who commit to taking money from your pocket and putting it into theirs.  Time and time again they opt for the party that embraces big spending.  The more likely that you job is dependent on public financing, the more likely you are likely to support the party of high taxes and high spending.

Net Tax Consumers vote themselves job security and pay raises whether they are doing necessary work or not.  Whether they are doing a good job or not.  Who wouldn't.

Ambrose Brierce nailed it when he defined politics as " A strife of interests masquerading as a contest of principles. The conduct of public affairs for private advantage.”

The way out of this is by disenfranchising from the electorate  those self-serving wretches who live on the public expense.  Ban them from the Booth!  No on should be allowed to use voting to pick their neighbors' pockets.

In fact, why don't we lock those SOBs up? 

Ben Franklin warned: “When the people find that they can vote themselves money that will herald the end of the republic.”

Stick a fork in us.  We’re nearly done.

The mechanics of this can be accomplished though analysis of Federal Income Tax Returns.  I’ll leave it great libertarian lawyers and accountants such as Neil Schloss to work through the details.

The old Two Percenter with libertarian CPA Neil Schloss
and Trenton legend Daryl Brooks

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"Half the people are stoned and the other half are waiting for the next election.
Half the people are drowned and the other half are swimming in the wrong direction." 
- Paul Simon