OK, but first I'll need a few facts:
Have you ever served in the military? What branch and for how long? Do you receive a pension?
Yes. Army. 3.5 years. No
Do you have a mortgage on your property? Is it a commercial/private/FHA loan?
No, my property is paid for.
Do you smoke?
Quit several times and currently don't smoke.
Are you a farmer? If so, what crops do you raise? Do you buy crop insurance?
No. None. No.
Did you attend public school?
Yes.
Do you have children? Do they attend public school?
Yes. Yes. End public schools today. I'll even do you one better. End child tax credits or any other tax credits associated with having children.
Have you ever been arrested and incarcerated?
No.
There's more, but let's start with that.
My answers in red.
Here's a little story for you.
When you buy something for yourself with your own money, you care about quality and price.
When you buy something for yourself with someone else's money, you care about quality and less about price.
When you buy something for someone else with your money, you care less about quality and more about price.
When you buy something for someone else with someone else's money, you care less about quality and price.
If you can understand the above, you'll understand why "public" is never better.
Yes, none of your business, none of your business.
Yes, none of your business,
No.
No, N/A, N/A.
Yes, both public and private.
Yes, none of your business.
None of your business.
Ok, let's have your list now. What do I owe you?
So, having utilized the resources of the community, you feel that we owed you those services for being born and you have no obligation back.
Bundy is your man.
Manatee, now where's my cricket field? Isn't that the sport where they pitch a ball on the ground and you swing a bat like a golf club? I don't even know what it is but it sounds cool and I want one. Like shooting ranges, it needs to be close. I shouldn't have to drive several miles to exercise a constitutional right to free parks and ranges. I wonder if I can deduct my fuel expenses driving too and fro from my taxes.
I kinda thought that was where you were headed. But I at least expected a list. So which community resources do I owe you for?
Do I owe you for my military service? Do I owe you for my mortgage? Ooh, ooh, I know, I must owe you for me not smoking. Maybe I owe you for the food **I pay for** instead of farming. Oh, wait. It's pubic school isn't it. Well, there are givers and there are takers. My parents paid WAY more property tax to cover my education than I used in public school. They even paid for other people's education in public school when they sent me to private school. So what part of that do I owe you? And even though it's none of your business, I'll tell you that no, I don't have kids in public school. But I pay for other people's kids to be in public school. Do I owe you for that? Perhaps I owe you for me never being arrested, even though I pay taxes to pay for other people's jail time.
But really, all this is a straw argument. I'm not saying I want *no* government. I'm saying I want *less* government. I want to make my own decisions, and as long as I don't harm others or take what belongs to someone else, I should get to do that.
So here's my list of what I owe you.
Sorry. I just checked. All of your tax money was used to buy Hellfire missiles which JSOC used in a "black" operation last month. You'll be happy to know that no cricket pitches were harmed in the operation.
A cricket field can be built almost anywhere, at any time. Yosemite is once in an eon. With the destruction of the redwoods by the timber industry and hydraulic mining in the hills above Sacramento, it's a wonder that some enterprising landbaron didn't use Yosemite for a landfill.
Jamil: Is this angst all because they never made you captain of the basketball team back in 7th grade?
If it's that simple, I'll take $50 from you and every other swinging richard to build my cricket field. It's well established that recreation is a constitutional right so pay up. My neighbor likes strip clubs so we better build him one of those too.
I wouldn't say it's "angst". And I don't play basketball much so no. However, I'm not fond of people implying that I owe society. I don't owe it anything. And having a less dependent society I think is better than having what we have. But it won't get more like what I want. We (society) will probably become more and more depend on the government, and will lose more and more personal liberty.
The amount of personal liberty we've lost since I was a kid is astounding. On the other hand, we pretty much felt back then that we were a community and had shared goals and values….and helped each other from time to time. No one ever questioned the need to educate the young.
Of course, it was an all white community that didn't deal with minorities other than to call them terrible names….but that was the 50's. Nothing is ever perfect.
Nothing is wrong with community, or having shared goals and values. But there's a difference between helping each other by choice and "helping" each other by gunpoint. I'm not anti-government. I'm pro-individual. Individuals can and should choose to help people who need help. I don't question the need to educate the young, but I don't think the current public school system is the way to do that.
Hey, a lot of people are pigs. Look at the women's restrooms at any stop you care to go to. These women are raising children.
OK, but first I'll need a few facts:
Have you ever served in the military? What branch and for how long? Do you receive a pension?
Yes, eight years, no.
Do you have a mortgage on your property? Is it a commercial/private/FHA loan?
Yes, private.
Do you smoke?
Yes.
Are you a farmer? If so, what crops do you raise? Do you buy crop insurance?
No to all.
Did you attend public school?
No.
Do you have children? Do they attend public school?
Yes and yes.
Have you ever been arrested and incarcerated?
No.
There's more, but let's start with that.