Sacrifice
During the last presidential debate John Kerry made an interesting point. He said that no president had ever made tax cuts during a time of war. Whether this is true or not, I can’t be certain. But that is the primary reason that I’m upset with the current administration. More specifically that the Bush administration has run the deficit up to record levels.
But I started thinking (a dangerous thing to be sure) that everyone that I’ve seen interviewed on the news and what not are perfectly happy making sacrifices in liberties to prevent terrorism, and seem to be ok with sending our young men & women to Iraq to fight for a democratic system of government there. In World War II there was rationing and people bought war bonds and so forth, so I believe that the American people are plenty willing to make these sacrifices for a cause that they believe in. So consider this, the primary funding for the members of Al-Qaeda and formerly for Saddam Hussein has been oil. So why not ask the American people to make some sacrifices at the gas pumps? Consider a tax on gasoline in the neighborhood of $2 a gallon (buses and other high occupancy vehicles could be exempt from this tax) This would bring us in line with what many other people in the world pay. We could use half of the money to fund military and rebuilding operations in Iraq and elsewhere and the other half to help fund research and development of alternative fuels to free us from dependance on oil in the Middle-East.
These would accomplish several things. It would primarily test the nation’s true resolve in the war in Iraq. If the nation isn’t willing to make this relatively minor sacrifice then how can we ask our military to be willing to sacrifice their lives? Next, it would reduce the consumption of oil and indirectly the financial capability of the terrorist organizations that rely on revenue from the sale of oil. It would reduce the amount of deficit spending by the federal level. It would allow us to finally break free from our dependence on foreign oil and own the technology that powers the world in the future. And hopefully it would reduce the number of pollutants in the air caused by petroleum based engines. That’s a sacrifice that I’d be willing to make.
Casey, I just happened upon your comments made about a $2 gas tax. While I agree we as a nation should be putting more money into this effort to help eliminate the deficit, I disagree with a tax that will hurt the poorer population more. Adding $2 a gallon tax may limit “fun” money that you and I would spend but could be grocery money for another family. It’s a fine line when adding taxes that you don’t penalize those who work hard for their money (rich or poor)or cause more people to fall under the poverty line. This is why cutting taxes is always popular with politicians but raising taxes and sending some to the poor house is not.