Another Angle on Capitalism vs Socialism

Senator Machin recently commented he didn’t want America to turn into a nation of dependents. To some extent we are all dependents if we attend public school, public college, or even ride the highways; the question is one of degrees.

Are we better off as a Town, State, or Nation if we primarily depend on people at a certain age to take care of themselves, plan for the future, work hard, sacrifice, take prudent risks, and become better trained or educated? Or do we always blame circumstances (rather than choices)?!

The President has clearly come down on the side of arguing our system is somehow rigged. Ignoring the fact the top 25% of earners pay 71% of all federal income taxes, he argues the rich need to pay “their fair share.” Who could argue with that?

Capital gains taxes, which are taxes paid on earnings from investments made with after-tax savings, should also be taxed heavily, ignoring that higher returns come from taking higher risk, and the more you flatten that curve the more you encourage municipal bond investing over job creating new businesses. It’s no coincidence that Joe Biden has never had a private enterprise job, a lifelong public employee.

There was a bipartisan consensus from President Carter to Trump that capital gains taxes should be used to encourage risk taking; only Biden ignores this wisdom. The radical agenda requires selective teaching. Teach that Europe has a better social safety net, but ignore that middle class taxpayers pay much higher taxes than in the US. Point to “systemic racism” as the ultimate go to point, and ignore the failure of 50 years of the welfare state to improve the lives of inner city residents. Point to needing more money for education while ignoring teachers unions throttling reform or example of New Jersey’s failures despite highest in the nation education spending. Never admit that many programs fail, are pay offs to supporters and benefit the administrators more than the recipients.

Ask any proponent of “equity” if they mean equality of outcomes and they will deny that is their goal. However, ten years later if certain groups have unequal outcomes they will demand more money, more regulations and more “equity” until the outcomes are equal. There is a better way, it’s been the American way since John Kennedy declared “A rising tide lifts all ships.”

— Craig A T Jones.