In recent days, I have been assailed by claims that the crazy Tea Party tax cutters are going to cause the country's infrastructure to collapse and return us back to the 18th century. This, to me, sounds like the echoing, desperate squeals of the panicked "federalus porkulus," the Federal pig, a creature that grows ever fatter and who's appetite cannot be satiated.
The first and simplest argument to the infrastructure scare is...the Federal government did not build and does not maintain our infrastructure.
< I'll wait a few seconds while that fact registers...take your time.>
The Federal government does not build roads, does not build utility or communications or any other infrastructure. These are built by State and local governments, by private power and communications companies...not by the Federal government. Yes, even the Interstate Highway system is built and maintained by the States. When was the last time you saw a "FED-DOT" crew patching potholes on a road, or "FED-Power" or "FED-Comm" crews out working in line trucks?
I know, I know, what about all of that Federal highway money? What about Obama's promises to fix our failing infrastructure? Nothing but political slight of hand, I assure you. The only thing the Federal government does is collect tax money and dole it out for projects. But where does this federal tax money come from in the first place? It comes from citizens and companies of the States. So let's think about this... we gather our money...ship it to Washington in amounts beyond comprehension...so they can ship it back to us for our infrastructure? Does this make sense to you?
But that alone, the seeming silliness of the whole thing, isn't the worst of it. What happens to this money between the time we send it to Washington and the time we see it back in our States? The monumental waste and inefficiency of the Federal government is well known...with the proverbial $600 hammer and $1000 toilet seat. The Heritage Foundation lists a few more recent examples in an article. My personal favorite...
"Washington will spend $2.6 million training Chinese prostitutes to drink more responsibly on the job." Seriously? How was that justification written up?
Then there is the layer after layer of bureaucrats and red tape that has to be supported by our money. Anyone who donates to charitable organizations wants to know that as much of their money as possible actually goes to the target of the organizations charity. A good charity has low administrative costs that take only pennies from each dollar donated. This, however, is not a characteristic of Federal Government. The Washington Times reported in February of this year that, "The Obama administration says the government will grow to 2.15 million employees this year, topping 2 million for the first time since President Clinton declared that 'the era of big government is over' and joined forces with a Republican-led Congress in the 1990s to pare back the federal work force" We also recently learned that the average Federal employee makes about twice as much in total compensation than the average private-sector employee. This type of bureaucracy costs a lot of money just to maintain.
But, the most insidious part of the whole thing is how our money is used to accrue power to the politicians and bureaucrats. Federal funds are routinely used to coerce, bribe and threaten people and organizations to do what the politicians want done. Highway and other funds are withheld from States unless they buckle under to Federal regulations. So called "Stimulus" money is used to blatantly payoff political cronies. Tax money...yours and mine...in the form of earmarks and pork projects is used to buy votes and control among Congressmen, as Senator Jim Demint warns the newly elected representatives of in a recent open letter. The tax code and the IRS are used to control individuals and corporations. This should not be viewed as just business as usual in Washington, but as the total perversion of our republican form of government that it is.
Another argument you hear for Federal involvement in infrastructure is that they need to make sure that all States get an equal chance at having all the best infrastructure. First of all, it is not how our government is designed, not to mention it is not allowed by the Constitution...and therefore illegal. But setting that aside for a minute, let's look at this logically. Do all States need the same infrastructure? Does a sparsely populated State like, say Wyoming or Montana need the same infrastructure as New York or California? Do the citizens of the States have a choice as to where they live? I mean, if you want ready access to museums, restaurants, theater and commerce, you can move to Manhattan. If you want nature, seclusion and a slower pace of life, you can move to Montana. Someone living in Manhattan should not expect a quiet, slow-paced life...and someone in Montana should not expect all the amenities and infrastructure of New York City. Life is made up of choices and compromises.
Regardless of the need of infrastructure in a given State, most States could much more afford what is needed if so much of their money was not being sent to Washington and being filtered through that inefficient bureaucracy. If there is still a need, this could be handled between the States. There are some good reasons to have good transportation systems between the States. It allows for more efficient trade and movement that benefits all States. States could, especially on a regional basis, work out some revenue sharing agreements to benefit the whole region and avoid the Federal pig.
But, some say, what about when the economy is in trouble like it is now? Surely the Federal government must step in and save the day. So you mean the same group of incompetents that caused the problem in the first place? Is that who you would trust to clean up their own mess? I say if we had not allowed them to so greatly exceed their legal boundaries in the first place, we would not be in the mess we are in now. To trust them to fix the economy by doing more of the same is the very definition of insanity.
But, we are told that without FDRs big-government policies of the New Deal we would never have come out of the Great Depression. This is simply foolishness. Many respected economists today, who have studied the Great Depression, now believe that FDR extended the depression by about seven years. FDR's own friend, Treasury Secretary and architect of the New Deal, Henry Morgenthau said this about their efforts:
“We have tried spending money. We are spending more than we have ever spent before and it does not work. I want to see this country prosperous. I want to see people get a job. I want to see people get enough to eat. We have never made good ...on our promises. I say after eight years of this Administration we have just as much unemployment as when we started. … And an enormous debt to boot!"
Americans have been hypnotized into thinking that nothing can get done in this country without the help of old Uncle Sugar...the Federal government. The American people have become programmed to believe that it is the job of their representatives to bring home big "pork project" money. This is not how the country was meant to be run and is just simply untrue. We can't be blamed for this type of thinking. We have been trained for years...decades...and indeed generations that this is the only way we have become such a great country. But, it is time to wake up from the hypnosis. We must start to look at the claims with a calm, logical mind.
There is nothing that makes sense about purposefully sending our resources through the legalized money laundering organization that resides in Washington D.C. States must begin to resist this drain on our wealth and return to their constitutional roles. Even if the States are corrupt, you can at least remove the layers of Federal corruption that provide little or no benefit. There is no good reason to continue to feed the pig. The pig must go on a drastic diet to return it to its proper size and function. Only then can our country return to prosperity and liberty.
