Where would you like your tax dollars to go?
March 17, 2017 at 4:01 pm
(This post was last modified: March 17, 2017 at 4:02 pm by Aroura.)
No matter the country in which you live, or your location on the political spectrum, taxes affect you in some way.
The US is now looking at a proposed budget that cuts many social programs, including Federal Medicaid, after-school aid for low income families with children, Meals-on-Wheels for low income elderly, foreign aid, public broadcasting, the Coast Guard and more, while increasing funding for the military and the southern border wall. They are also claiming that this budget is "compassionate", saying they won't ask a single mother or coal miner to pay for meals on wheels, but will ask them to pay for the military (all while not actually changing their tax burden one whit, mind you). Also, many tax cuts for the top 1%.
So, what are your priorities?
I'd like to hear from our local Trump voters, but also other Americans, and foreigners, how would you prioritize your own tax dollars if you could?
Personally, I understand the need for some military and security spending of course, but it would be much lower on my priority list. We already have the largest military in existence by quite a bit. We could cut it in half and still have an enormous and over-bloated military. cutting three quarters of it seems more reasonable to me. Withdraw from exterior conflicts and invest more of that money in foreign aid.
Basically, my order would reverse that of the current administration. I would like to see my tax dollars go to:
1. Improve public education. This would include brick and mortor schools, but also programs such as PBS, and encowments for arts and humanities.
2. Medical aid for those living in poverty.
3. Useful infrastructure (bridges, schools, roads, Wind mills, solar plants, etc)
4. Food and clothing aid for those living in poverty. Including welfare, meals-on-wheels, WIC, school lunch funding, nutrition education, etc.
5. Research and applications for protecting the environment.
6. Security spending, including military and Coast guard.
7. Increase the tax burden on the wealthy, decrease it on the middle class and poor.
The wall shouldn't even exist, imho, not one penny more should go towards what is already there.
I'm sure I'm missing a few things from my lists. Please let me know what is important to you? What would you reduce spending on? What would you eliminate entirely?
And for Trump voters, do you agree with the proposed budget? Do you feel it is in the best interest of most/all US citizens to greatly reduce and/or eliminate social programs and increase our military?
The US is now looking at a proposed budget that cuts many social programs, including Federal Medicaid, after-school aid for low income families with children, Meals-on-Wheels for low income elderly, foreign aid, public broadcasting, the Coast Guard and more, while increasing funding for the military and the southern border wall. They are also claiming that this budget is "compassionate", saying they won't ask a single mother or coal miner to pay for meals on wheels, but will ask them to pay for the military (all while not actually changing their tax burden one whit, mind you). Also, many tax cuts for the top 1%.
So, what are your priorities?
I'd like to hear from our local Trump voters, but also other Americans, and foreigners, how would you prioritize your own tax dollars if you could?
Personally, I understand the need for some military and security spending of course, but it would be much lower on my priority list. We already have the largest military in existence by quite a bit. We could cut it in half and still have an enormous and over-bloated military. cutting three quarters of it seems more reasonable to me. Withdraw from exterior conflicts and invest more of that money in foreign aid.
Basically, my order would reverse that of the current administration. I would like to see my tax dollars go to:
1. Improve public education. This would include brick and mortor schools, but also programs such as PBS, and encowments for arts and humanities.
2. Medical aid for those living in poverty.
3. Useful infrastructure (bridges, schools, roads, Wind mills, solar plants, etc)
4. Food and clothing aid for those living in poverty. Including welfare, meals-on-wheels, WIC, school lunch funding, nutrition education, etc.
5. Research and applications for protecting the environment.
6. Security spending, including military and Coast guard.
7. Increase the tax burden on the wealthy, decrease it on the middle class and poor.
The wall shouldn't even exist, imho, not one penny more should go towards what is already there.
I'm sure I'm missing a few things from my lists. Please let me know what is important to you? What would you reduce spending on? What would you eliminate entirely?
And for Trump voters, do you agree with the proposed budget? Do you feel it is in the best interest of most/all US citizens to greatly reduce and/or eliminate social programs and increase our military?
“Eternity is a terrible thought. I mean, where's it going to end?”
― Tom Stoppard, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead
― Tom Stoppard, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead
