What the Heck Happened??

Sadly, this is too true to be funny,

The next time you hear a politician use the word 'billion' in a casual manner, think about whether you want the 'politicians' spending YOUR tax money.

A billion is a difficult number to comprehend, but one advertising agency did a good job of putting that figure into some perspective in one of it's releases.

A. A billion seconds ago it was 1959.

B. A billion minutes ago Jesus was alive.

C. A billion hours ago our ancestors were living in the Stone Age.

D. A billion days ago no-one walked on the earth on two feet.

E. A billion dollars ago was only 8 hours and 20 minutes, at the rate our government is spending it.

While this thought is still fresh in our brain...let's take a look at New Orleans...

It's amazing what you can learn with some simple division.

Louisiana Senator, Mary Landrieu (D) is presently askingCongress for 250 BILLION DOLLARS to rebuild New Orleans. Interesting number. What does it mean?

A. Well...if you are one of the 484,674 residents of New Orleans (every man, woman, and child) you each get $516,528.

B. Or...if you have one of the 188,251 homes in New Orleans, your home gets $1,329,787.

C. Or...if you are a family of four...your family gets $2,066,012.

Washington, D.C.: <> Are all your calculators broken??

Accounts Receivable Tax

Building Permit Tax

CDL License Tax

Cigarette Tax

Corporate Income Tax

Dog License Tax

Federal Income Tax

Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)

Fishing License Tax

Food License Tax

Fuel Permit Tax

Gasoline Tax

Hunting License Tax

Inheritance Tax

Inventory Tax

IRS Interest Charges (tax on top of tax)

IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)

Liquor Tax

Luxury Tax

Marriage License Tax

Medicare Tax

Property Tax

Real Estate Tax

Service charge taxes

Social Security Tax

Road Usage Tax (Truckers)

Sales Taxes

Recreational Vehicle Tax

School Tax

State Income Tax

State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)

Telephone Federal Excise Tax

Telephone Federal Universal

Service Fee Tax

Telephone Federal, State and Local Surcharge Tax

Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge Tax

Telephone Recurring and Non-recurring Charges Tax

Telephone State and Local Tax

Telephone Usage Charge Tax

Utility Tax

Vehicle License Registration Tax

Vehicle Sales Tax

Watercraft Registration Tax

Well Permit Tax

Workers Compensation Tax

STILL THINK THIS IS FUNNY?

Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago... and our nation was the most prosperous in the world.

We had absolutely no national debt...We had the largest middle class in the world...and Mom stayed home to raise the kids.

What happened?

Can you spell "politicians"?

And I still have to press '1' for English!

~~~~~

No, I didn't do the math to figure out if a billion seconds ago it really was 1959. I'm assuming someone else did. And even if the year had changed, assuming the math is correct, it would probably be somewhere in the 1960's - forty years ago! Same goes for the billion minutes, hours, etc, mentioned above. If you're really curious as to whether the math is correct, be my guest. But don't come back and tell me the above is wrong. I don't really care.

You see, even if the math is off, it's the imagery that's important. Politicians are looking at Billions like it's nothing. It's a billion dollars for Pete's sake! More money than most people, including politicians, will see in their lifetimes.

It's really easy to spend someone else's money. It's not coming out of Washington pockets. It's coming out of yours and mine.

Look at what Landrieu is asking for New Orleans. Before I go any further, I have to remind my readers that I do feel for the citizens of NO. I really do. But why should you and I pay billions to people who chose to live in a city that is situated in a basin with the Gulf of Mexico held back by levees? Why should you and I buy homes for people whose previous homes were uninsured? If my home is uninsured and destroyed, is someone going to pay me to rebuild my home? My life?

Doutbtful. My friends and family may help me out until I get on my feet, but I probably won't be getting government handouts. I've done the research. I don't fit the social demographics of people who get handouts.

Did you get a handout from the "stimulus" package that started earlier this year? I doubt it. You didn't fit the demographics. You weren't a multi-million dollar company that made exceedingly bad choices.

No, apparently in the United States of today, you have to make bad choices to get help from our government. Be greedy and do things that cause the economy to plummet, live in a city that was reclaimed from the Gulf of Mexico, and live hand-to-mouth beyond your means, to get any help.

I don't expect the government to help me out, despite what you might have taken from the above. I just want to be able to make a decent living, put food on the table, clothes on my back, a roof over my head and have what I consider to be the niceities of life and look forward to a comfortable retirement.

I think that should be what the American ideal should be. If necessary, I'd like a hand-up when needed, not a hand-out.

Is that really too much to ask? To expect? To want?