Pretty regularly, I get emails from the White House. You can sign up to get your propaganda here. Lately, the White House has been making an effort to end the payroll taxes that will otherwise expire at the end of the year. By their numbers, this is about $40 per paycheck for each family.
While I would appreciate the effort in most circumstances, the squabbles of our elected officials and their failure to approach anything roughly approximating financial solvency gives me serious pause.
For those who haven't had a chance to run the numbers, our current national debt stands in excess of $15 trillion. The population of the United States floats around 300,000. You, the reader, owe just shy of $50,000 of that debt. This, in large part, is what you pay taxes for.
You should also be aware that our year over year interest payment is about $450 billion. That's roughly $1,500 per year you pay to cover interest on our federal loans. Every single year. This is enhanced (if you'll allow me to use a very subtle irony) by our year over year increase in that federal debt- what is called the "deficit". This year, we're set to spend a little over $1.5 trillion more than we take in - about a 10% increase in the federal debt. Because of this, next year's interest payment will actually exceed $500 billion.
The last little factoid that you should be aware of is the distribution of wealth in the United States and the capacity to pay down this astonishing amount of debt. From the 2009 tax data (http://www.irs.gov/taxstats/indtaxstats/article/0,,id=96981,00.html), we could take all income by all millionaires in this country and we would end up with a little less than $1 trillion. To do the same for all persons making more than $200,000 in a year, we would have ~$2.5 trillion. If we were to take the entire adjusted gross income for every person who filed a tax return in 2009, we could pay down our debt by $8.4 trillion dollars.
There's an interesting twist to the statistics above: the only viable channel for generating sufficient revenue in the United States is the enormous middle class (those making between $50,000-$200,000). The total income in this bracket is $4 trillion- about half of the total adjusted income of the population of the United States.
This is why I'm a little frustrated with the White House right now. $40 per paycheck is such a small sacrifice - one I'm willing to pay to make my government solvent again. While this won't make much more than a minuscule drop in the debt bucket, it's the mentality and attitude that have to change: we have to be willing to shoulder the burden for the debt we helped create.
Instead of asking for this necessary sacrifice, the White House is asking for people to submit what they could and would do with an extra $40 per paycheck. Here is my response:
Giving up $40 per paycheck will help to pay for a solvent government. While I'm not always satisfied with the way my tax dollars are spent, I am deeply concerned with our country's debt, how this reflects on me, and how this endangers the quality of life for my children.
I am disturbed by our willingness to shirk this responsibility as a country. We are willing to ask a tiny fraction of our populace, those who earn more than a million dollars, to bear the tax burden for the rest of us. I am trying desperately to teach my five children the value of a dollar and the worth of working hard. Principles of frugality are essential to sound living. Yet I find myself having to defend the irresponsible choices made by the persons who represent me in highest offices of the land.
I wish for a day when our governments - both federal and state - will lead by example.
We have seen some fine individuals step forward as representatives of that small percent of our population and offer their support. While it is certainly easier for a millionaire to shoulder a greater burden, it is clearly not enough. Were we to take every dollar and every cent earned by all millionaires, it would not be enough to satisfy our federal deficit. This is a burden that must be shared by all.
I wish for a day when our elected leaders will ask me - the middle class - to sacrifice to make this country healthy again.
I wish for a day when those for whom I have cast a vote to step forward and act responsibly.
I would invite everyone to leave their feedback with the White House. You can do so at their site
