The future isn’t a God-given right
Update: Since the Budget Committee is discussing this topic now, I thought it would be timely to bump it up to now since the original 10/11/06 posting.
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I was reading the comments about spreading the tax burden, and have several thoughts:
- There seems to be a predisposition among public officials to use tax abatement to attract business (and political contributions);
- The business trend seems to be shifting the "benefit" pkg to the employee - 401k's vs pensions, employee paid healthcare insurance vs employer paid healthcare, etc.;
- Spiraling executive compensation vs stagnant employee compensation.
Ok – that’s where big business is heading. Now look at your public school budget, and see if "benefits" aren't the 2nd highest expense after salaries. Then compare the benefits with those offered by local businesses. If you want private business to support public health care, then stop providing premium healthcare to public employees. Then teachers will stay on their spouses’ healthcare plan, instead of viceversa.
When did public service become a cushy ride? We need another JFK to remind us that serving others is the higher purpose, not a way to skate through life. I'm suggesting that public education should focus on educating, local business should focus on business, and public gov't should focus on providing for the public good. Parents should be able to vote with their tax dollars, not just their ballot apathy. Implement a voucher system, and actually see how well the public schools measure up. Involved parents make the difference, not personal wealth, and not standardized testing.
Yes, I'm for statewide health care (but against federal medicaid and medicare). A minimalist approach. If you want more, than you can purchase supplemental insurance. We don't need to break school budgets with your personal healthcare needs, and we don't need to drive businesses south-of-the-border with your personal healthcare needs. Yes, employers need to offer employees several different choices in supplemental healthcare. However, the goal needs to be - healthcare is a personal responsibility. Smoking, drinking, eating cheesecake – these are personal choices (and I like cheesecake!). Taking non-prescription pharmaceuticals (now that’s a loaded phrase!) is a personal choice - don't pass it off as my responsibility.
The concept is simple - we need to be responsible for our own future, and stop expecting someone else to pay for it. The future isn’t a God-given right – the future is where we reap what we sow.
