Opinari.net
Opinari - Latin term for Opinion. Opinari.net is just what it seems: a cornucopia of rants, raves and poignant soliloquy. |
Wednesday, March 10, 2004
Kerry nonsense:
Repeat something often enough, and people will believe it. This is apparently John Kerry's presidential strategy:
"If you add up the true costs of this president's economic policies, you get a 'Bush Tax' of higher property taxes, higher fees, higher health care costs -- at the same time middle-class incomes are going down," he said. "The Bush Tax can take $3,500 or more from the pockets of America's middle class. And they can't afford that price."
The Bush Tax. Isn't that catchy? I'm trying to figure out what the hell he's talking about. From my tax returns, I can see lower outlays for taxes, not higher, and by a double-digit percentage. So obviously, the direct taxation canard won't fly for Kerry, so he's trying to implicate Bush indirectly.
So let's look at the four accusations directed against Bush:
1. Higher property taxes. Bull. If you want to blame someone for high property taxes, blame town councils and politicians who cannot, or will not, cut spending. (Note: I am not happy about Bush's spending in its own rite, but that topic is a wash, because the Democrats have historically led the way in terms of spending.)
2. Higher fees. What fees would these be? Can you just make an accusation without any specifics, and expect it to stick? In Kerry's world, you can.
3. Higher health care costs. This is a laugher to the n-th degree. Kerry's own party embraces government administered health care. Analysts have shown that Medicare has led to a misallocation of medical resources, both in terms of availability (specialists won't enter a field where they will not receive due compensation), and price (spending caps lead to higher prices for "paying customers", which lead to higher premiums).
4. Lowered middle class incomes. This is a bizarre accusation. Is Kerry saying that, per capita, the middle class is making less than during the Clinton administration? Per capita income for the whole population has gone up consistently, whether it was Clinton or Bush in office. So Kerry must be accusing the wealthy class (of which he himself is a member) of stealing money from the middle class. But how is the wealthy class accomplishing this? Kerry, as usual, isn't specific. Kerry knows full well that the upper class are the capitalists who reinvest in companies (often their own), creating jobs, and productivity.
I know this much. If I had to take a 10% pay cut, or if I saw a 33% increase in my insurance outlays (which I did in 2004), or if my auto fees went up (which they did in 2004), or if my property taxes were increased (which they were in 2004), I wouldn't blame it on Bush, nor would I have blamed it on Clinton in the 90s. Unfortunately, as Kerry mentions these "points" ad nauseum, they will be believed by more and more people.Labels: Archives_2004
.: posted by
Dave
12:16 PM
| |
Recommended Reading
|
