Ohio Roundtable: The Public Square - A Taxing Disagreement - The Camel's
Nose
Ever hear of the camel’s nose?
You know the story. If the camel gets his nose
under the tent it won’t be long before the rest of him follows. Evidently it
works that way in the desert. It works that way in Washington D.C.
too—especially with taxes.
When America began, the idea of an income tax
was reprehensible. The Founders fought a war over taxation. It took until 1913
for our ancestors to forget that fact. When the income tax began, the average
American family paid pennies if the paid anything at all.
When Social Security began it was only to keep people out of the poor house.
People only paid one percent of their income. Today? You know the story. Most of
us are paying close to 50% of everything we make in sales taxes, property taxes,
social security taxes, state, federal, and local income taxes.
Now the President wants to take your health
care benefits, if your company pays for them and they exceed an arbitrary
average of what the White House thinks you should be paying. But that’s just the
camel’s nose. Before you know it, Congress will find plenty of reasons to tax
every last dollar of your company paid benefits. And they will likely penalize
you if you try to buy more health care coverage then they believe you need.
There is a real belief in Washington that
rationing health care is the best way to deal with rising health care costs.
Taxing or penalizing people who use the system is one way to begin rationing
care. Forcing people to buy less insurance is another way. Once the taxes and
the rationing begin—the rest of the camel will follow.
More information on health care issues in America.
A Taxing Disagreement - The
Camel's Nose - January 31st, 2007
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