I'm Payin' Taxes, What Am I Buyin'

Apparently, now diplomacy is how W. deals with countries who might carry a nuclear threat. All I can remember is three years ago when diplomacy was not an option in Iraq. I guess now, when we have to raise the countries national debt to $9 trillion, it isn't as easy to start an unwarranted war with a country that may posses weapons of mass destruction. When there are glaring problems with destruction from a natural disaster that still haven't been taken care of, it's hard to convince a country that starting another war is necessary. It's bad enough that we're stuck in a complete mess that shouldn't have ever started in Iraq. It seems that whether we stay or go, this mess won't get any better any time soon.

What really concerns me most, though, is where our money is and is not going. I couldn't help but think what a few dollars withheld from my federal tax return would do. While we continue to spend billions upon billions of dollars on a war we shouldn't have ever started (I never even considered supporting this war), a city ripped apart by a hurricane seven months ago still hasn't been cleaned up. Education, health care, and other human resources are issues that largely seem publicly avoided now because of the glaring problems with the war and lack of clean-up in New Orleans. My question is, if a few dollars were taken away from my tax return or added to those who already owe money to the government, couldn't we fund efforts to actually make some progress cleaning up that city? I'm neither a political nor an economic whiz, and I've been away from the states and all the talk there since before the hurricane, so I may be missing some ideas. But why can't American's pay a little more in taxes to take care of its' own various messes? Why do we support leaders who chose to cut federal funding from domestic programs and resources to either support a war or put money back in the people's pockets? Would it really ruin a nation if they had to spend a few extra dollars a year on something useful? I don't know, maybe I'm out of line, but I remember W. mentioning fiscal responsibility when the US economy was at its worst; shouldn't he too worrying about fiscal responsibilities and spend tax dollars on something useful and warranted? If he still believes we should 'stay the course' in Iraq, then he shouldn't feel bad asking the American people to spend a little more to support this so other things aren't neglected. Don't get me wrong, I don't want to pay for a war I never supported, but I'd rather give a little more so we don't have to leave cities like New Orleans and its' inhabitants to the wayside in the name of National Security. How can we really be secure from foreign forces if we're not secure within?

In the rotation:

I'm Payin' Taxes, What Am I Buyin' The JBs An excellent question raised by the JBs on a great album, Damn Right I Am Somebody. The title track to the album is also one of my favorite JBs tunes.