"Fire, Water and Government . . . "

How To Fix This Mess We're In

I'm a faithful and devout news watcher. It's an addiction that I've managed since childhood that I fed by committing 90% of my time in high school to journalism, which then led to majoring in Mass Comm/Journalism with a minor in History (they kind of go hand-in-hand). My failed attempt at college did nothing to lessen my love for the news of the day. In my immaturity, I leaned on the likes of "Good Morning America" and the ever vigilant News Channel 10 and their consistant coverage of all things positive going on in Amarillo. As I transitioned from naive teenager to informed 20-something, I discovered the likes of CNN and MSNBC. After joining the military, my narrow focus broadened and things like the Chamber Cook-Off and a two-car accident blocking traffic going into the mall were replaced by the plight of natives in the Congo and China's tightening grip on America. I suppose that being in the military made me feel more a part of the world, rather than just another person taking up space in our little corner of the Texas Panhandle. Hurricane Katrina took this from a personal hypothesis to an understood truth. Like many, I was glued to the continuing coverage, especially after Chris volunteered to go down with the 82nd to assist as a medic. Seeing the familiar face of a neighbor and knowing your husband is right behind him on national cable news solidifies the idea that we are a part of something bigger.
While Chris was deployed to Iraq, I discovered a prime time cable news program called "Scarborough Country". Joe Scarborough was the host, a former republican congressman from Florida who always seemed to be saying exactly what I was thinking. I've continued to follow Joe as his show grew in popularity and eventually replaced Imus and became "Morning Joe," a more balanced a broad political news program that I'm forced to DVR since it's on at 3am on the West Coast (the up-side is that I can fast-forward through the commercials turning it into a two and a quarter rather than three hour show). It's both entertaining and serious, light and intelligent. And it's all politics or the political side of whatever might be the top stories of the day.
I don't always agree with Joe, and I don't always disagree with Mika, his left-leaning co-host. But one thing all three of us agree on is that this country is headed down the proverbial toilet faster than we're able to cut off the water. And sadly our elected officials are the ones holding down the handle.
Now, those inside the D.C. Beltway would ask what qualifies me to have an opinion and, even worse, offer up solutions to the problems facing this great nation. Well I'll tell you. First, I'm old enough to vote and I do not vote based on who is pro-life or pro-gay or whatever. I vote based on who has a plan and whether or not I like it. Second, I know my stuff. Probably more than, say, Sarah Palin or the new trending front runner, Herman Cain. I follow politics like my husband follows baseball. I read the books, watch the documentaries and listen to the commentaries. Third, I am a student of History as much as I am of politics, which unfortunately is not the case for most of our elected officials who seem to think Reagan never raised taxes. Lastly, I am a person with a brain, not a fund raising robot whose only programmed function is to run for re-election. I am a young mother, a wife of a soldier turned civilian, a home school educator and, frankly, this is a blog so I can say what I want and if you don't like it, don't follow it. So here's my plan (the short and simple version for people who work for a living):
Federal Income Tax- This one seems like a no-brainer to me. You make money, you pay taxes. You make more money, you pay more taxes. I don't care if you give to charity or buy a Prius. What you do with your pay check is your business. But it's your responsibility as a US citizen to pay your taxes. A household with an income of $50k or less should pay 5%, $51k-$150k should pay 7%, $151k to $500k should pay 10%, and anything over $501k should pay 15%. No loop holes, no write-offs, no deductions.
Corporate Tax- Businesses should pay 15% on revenues for that fiscal year. Period. Not the 35% that Comcast pays or the 0% (that's right, I said 0%) that GE pays. To promote growth, you offer a 5% reduction if the business can show proof of consistent growth over a minimum of three years. The business will receive the reduced rate for two years, and after re-evaluation, if they can still show proof of consistent growth, they continue to receive the discounted rate. Again, no loop holes, no write-offs and no deductions. Honest math makes honest businesses.
Subsidies and Bail Outs- No more! The idea behind starting a business is to be profitable. If you cannot turn a profit or, at the very least, make enough to pay your bills, you should not be in business. *Note: All you ag people quit huffing and puffing, I'll get to you in a minute.* I was in Kindergarten when my dad opened his own print shop. I watched it grow as I did, and then I watched it begin to level off as I did. But, before the shop started to decline, my dad did what any smart business man would do and sold it. And he IS smart, and I have faith that, with some optimism, he'll find a new niche and grow another profitable business. But that's the point. Do good, or don't do it at all. But certainly don't do bad then turn to the government for money. And if there is no market or no demand for whatever it is that you want to sell/grow/develop, the federal government should not be the bank you turn to for funding. If you can find some wealthy sap willing to foot the bill for your electric space ship, more power to you. But if tax payers don't want it, then they shouldn't have to pay for it. Risk and revenue do not make good bedfellows.
Wall Street/Banks- This is where my expertise is lacking. But to be completely honest, I'm pretty sure no one really knows what's going on in the financial system, not even those people involved with it. Here's what I know and I'll just leave it at this: If you want to risk your life savings on something that's not guaranteed and you want to pay someone else to do it, then that's your business and you deal with the rewards or the consequences. BUT, said paid risk takers should be held responsible for obeying the law (i.e. Bernie Madoff). There's a difference between being a crappy trader and a thief. Thieves go to jail, crappy traders get fired. Banks should not be allowed to become "too big to fail". I realize that just because 100 people put $100,000 each into the same branch of BofA doesn't mean that all 100 people will be able to go withdraw that exact amount from that same branch all at the same time. BUT, banks should not be allowed to play a game of Risk with our money, investments and mortgages. Banks are supposed to be the safe place for money. So regulate the snot out of them. Also, all these fees are ludicrous. If an account only has $5 in it and the holder tries to buy something for $10, decline the card. If I don't sign up for overdraft protection and you allow me to make a $40 purchase when there's only $20 in my account, you shouldn't be able to charge me $35 per day that I'm overdrawn. That's on you, Mr. Bank. If you sign up for overdraft protection, then you agree to pay the fee. If not, you can't overdraw your account. Back in the day, we called that bouncing a check and it would earn you the privilege of having your name and your check stamped with "INSUFFICIENT FUNDS" taped to the cash register at your favorite neighborhood Mexican restaurant for God and all of your Friday night margarita chums to see, forever shaming you from that establishment. And why in the world are banks allowed to charge me a $5 fee just for USING my debit card?! Just because the banks decide to risk it all in the credit card game doesn't mean those of us who are responsible "debit card only" customers should have to make up for their lost revenue. Again, Mr. Bank, that's on you. So I guess the long and short of the Wall Street/Banks section of my fiscal policy is "Regulate, Regulate, REGULATE!"E
Education- Again, this seems to me like a no-brainer.
K-12: For public schools, use what's working. And the only thing working in public schools right now are charter schools. Take the leaders of the most successful schools in America, most being charter schools, find out what they're doing, and implement those ideas into the public school system. No, not all schools are created equal and I get that. But if a school is failing, give it an ultimatum. Fix the problem, or lose your school. If the problem is leadership, change the leadership. If the problem is teachers, change the teachers. If the walls are falling down, then fix the darn walls! Districts should be held accountable by the state and the state should be held accountable by the fed. If a district doesn't allocate money to replace broken toilets in an older school in a poor neighborhood, opting instead to build a new football stadium, then the state steps in, removes leadership and puts new, good ones in place. If a teacher has been there for 20 years but her kids aren't learning a darn thing, then fire HER, not the brand new, excited, enthusiastic teacher that all the kids love and can't wait to learn from every day.  Teachers cannot be graded on tests alone. If that were the case, I'd be a horrible teacher. My daughter can't take a test to save her life. Looking at fractions on a piece of paper makes her head spin, but she can double the ingredients to a recipe with no problem at all, and she can measure me, create a pattern and sew me dress without ever second guessing herself. That's how I know I'm not failing as a home school teacher. Public school teachers are no different. A kid may bomb the annual standardized test, but their mom will tell you they've progressed SO MUCH since having Mrs. Smith. The kid will tell you they used to hate reading, but now they love it because of Mrs. Smith. And Mrs. Smith's grade book will show you that the kid, a third grader, has gone from an early first grade level of comprehension to a late second/early third grade level of comprehension, all in less than ten months. That, my friends, is good teaching. Standardized tests should only be used to make sure the school, district and state are not falling behind national and international standards. They should NOT be used to judge the quality of a teacher. *Note: I am a firm believer in the rights of a parent. Those rights should not be questioned or compromised, especially not by the government. If a parent, who works and lives in a home which provides revenue for the school district, wants to place their child in an alternate form of eduction (private, religious, specialty or home school) that is their right and it should not be questioned or the chosen curriculum questioned or dictated by anyone other than the parent responsible.*
Higher Ed: College is expensive. Always has been. This is why parents used to have what was called a "college fund" which, in its simplest form, was a savings account parents would open when their kids were very small and they would deposit money into regularly until their child graduated. It's a simple concept, but with the introduction of this thing called "student loans" in the late 80's which turned into an epidemic of loan dependency in the 90's and early 21st century, parents no longer save money for college and instead strap their recent grads with mountains of debt without the guarantee of a pay check to get rid of it. My solution? Get rid of student loans. If your mom and dad didn't save for college, get a job and pay for it yourself. Or work hard in high school and get some scholarships. And a job. Because, like I said before, college is expensive. Also, go where you can afford to go. While I would love for at least one of my kids to graduate from the University of Texas at Austin, I'm very aware of how absurdly expensive it is, especially since it's out of state. There are hundreds of very good schools out there that will get you the exact same education, if not better, at half the price. Save your Hook 'Em Horns! shirt for Saturdays in the fall and go instead to a school that you can afford and whose colors actually complement your skin tone.
The "Service for School" Plan: The military has been trying to resolve its budget and retention issues for years. Well, I have the solution. Four years of service for four years of college. No, not the G.I. Bill that's currently in place and needs to stay in place for people like us who enlisted in the military after we were married and had kids. No, this is for kids fresh out of high school who want to go to college but can't. Join the Army, get a roof over your head, three meals a day, free health care and dental, uniforms to wear for every occasion and a good lesson in leadership and personal responsibility. No salary. Instead, four years of college at the state school of their choice in their home state with room and board and books paid in full. They'll have to get a part time job if they want to eat out or whatever, but after four years in the service, they'll be disciplined enough to handle it and not flunk out. Problem solved.
Medicare- Again, "Regulate, Regulate, REGULATE!" Billions of dollars in fraudulent charges are being overlooked and Medicare is collapsing because of it. Hire a group of people whose sole job is to seek out those who are screwing the government and go after them. Make them pay for it, then deny them the ability to accept Medicare. Just the thought of the possibility of this happening is enough to scare most people out of defrauding the government. Also, quit with the drug rights thing! Allow pharmaceutical companies to make generic forms of any prescription drug just 12 months after the boutique brand comes out. This will save millions.
Social Security- I'm sorry, but if you pay into it, you should be able to get it back. BUT, if you choose to continue working until you're 90, then you shouldn't get SSI until you're 90. If you have millions of dollars just lying around for a rainy day, then you shouldn't get SSI. If you're like me and you have contributed very little because you chose to stay at home and raise your kids, then you better hope those kids love you enough to take you in and support you once your husband and his income can no longer do so. Social Security is just that, SECURITY. It's to make sure you don't starve to death at 87. It's not for paying a mortgage, cell bill, cable, groceries, gas and Christmas presents for all 37 grand kids. If you want to retire, save money for it, pay off your house and don't buy a new Audi at 64.
Foreign Policy- 1) We don't negotiate with terrorists . . . ever. 2) Just because you have oil doesn't mean we have to support your decision to slaughter your own people. But Israel has our support no matter what. 3) The best offense is a good defense. The war on terror can't be won when the opponents have home field advantage. Bring our troops home, save money, save lives, build up your military, your weapons and your borders so that no one would dare enter our country by air, land or sea because they would know they'd never make it five minutes inside our territorial border.
Illegal Immigration- The best way to put a halt to illegal immigration is not by chasing after illegal immigrants, but instead chasing after the people who employ them. Fine the employers $10,000 per person they hired that doesn't have papers. And the employer doesn't have to prove or not prove that the immigrant works for them. If INS comes in and there's illegals in your fields or in your factory, that's $10k per head. If they come back next week and there's new illegals, that's another $10k per head. Eventually, no one will hire them and they'll all have to go back home. As far as drugs and bad guys go, a fence will not stop them. Not even a 20 foot tall one with barbed wire that's electrified, Mr. Cain. Again, the best offense is a good defense. Since the border patrol is already part of homeland security, make them soldiers. Pay them like soldiers. Give them the same benefits as soldiers and arm them like soldiers. Problem solved again.
The Obesity Crisis- Mandate that school lunches be healthy . . . and I mean really healthy, not this corn and chicken nuggets nonsense that's going on right now. Also, if an adult chooses to eat a quarter pounder every day for lunch, then they should have to pay more for health insurance. So should smokers, by the way. Give them six months to lose the weight, six months to keep it off, and if they can't, their premiums go up. Yes, there is a disparity when it comes to poor people and obesity. But the fact of the matter is that it's cheaper to be fat. Junk food is cheaper than healthy food. So tax junk food. Also, give a $30,000 annual allotment to farms that grow edible fruits, veggies and meat (there you go, ag people). That money can be used to support their families so that the money they make off their crops can be used to plant more crops and buy new equipment. If a farmer wants to grow corn for ethanol, let Conoco Philips pay them.
Environment- Tax gas till you're blue in the face. The fastest way to get clean energy implemented and reduce our independence on foreign oil is to make gas too expensive to consume at the rate we are consuming it now. Also, invest in new roads, more railways for trains that actually move people (i.e. high speed rail) and cleaner energy sources. It won't make us any money, but the gas tax will pay for it and we'll benefit in the long run.

So that's pretty much it in a nut shell. No, I'm not running for office . . . I don't have the patience : ) But if I can sit down at my computer one afternoon with three kids running around all crazy and having to stop typing every five minutes to get chocolate milk or comfort a crying 4th grader who just got beat up by her 2 year old sister and still come up with all this, then why can't someone with a title and a much bigger pay check do it? I'm just sayin' . . . .