Uncle Roger's Notebooks of Daily Life

Voting and Taxes

I pay a lot of taxes. Most of us do.

The government, in order to provide us services (police, fire, schools, roads, etc.), needs money. So we all chip in. I don't mind that. In fact, I'm actually willing to pay more. That's why I always vote for school bonds and the like. Mind you, I wish my taxes were lower, but I understand that if I want safe roads, good schools, fire and police protection, and so on, I have to do my part.

The problem is, not everyone pays taxes. Some people simply don't earn enough to be able to contribute. That's perfectly fine. Hopefully, if we all help them out, they'll be able to get to a point where they can chip in. And if not, well, I don't mind chipping in a bit so they can get by.

But there are people who are more than able to pay their fair share and yet they don't. People who use more of the government's services than the rest of us and yet do not pay taxes. They certainly can afford it, but they still don't. Some of them even think that not paying taxes makes them smarter than the rest of us.

It doesn't. It just makes them freeloaders. They're getting a free ride on our backs.

Now, while I don't mind paying my fair share of taxes, I very much do mind paying someone else's share, when they're quite capable of paying their own way.

The only way to stop this is to not vote for politicians who enable it and replace them with people who will represent the rest of us.

So, come Tuesday, get your asses out to the polls and vote for the candidates who pay their fair share and who are most likely to ensure that the wealthy do as well.