THE CONSERVATIVE VIEW
BY RUSSELL TURNER
A couple of days ago I read an article about the government backing off of a tax that would have added fifteen cents onto the cost of a live cut Christmas tree. After doing a little research, it was my understanding that the Tree Growers Association asked the government to collect the tax in order to boost tree sales. The group claims that the fee is not a tax and that it is similar to the “Got Milk” dairy marketing campaign and the beef industry’s “What’s for Dinner” commercials, both examples of what officials call highly successful advertising efforts which boosted sales and consumption. Imported fresh trees would have been assessed as they cross the border, and American growers would have paid in February for each fresh-cut Christmas tree sold. Small growers and all-organic tree farms were exempt. After a huge outcry from conservative groups, the Obama Administration has canceled the implementation of this new tax.
While the fifteen cents would probably not break anyone’s bank, I do not feel that it is in the scope of government functions to get into the business of promoting the sale of Christmas trees. I believe that the least that government can be involved in our private business the better. The mentality that far too many of our people have adopted is one of the driving forces of the problems that we are experiencing in our country today. I feel that if the Tree Growers Association wants to increase their sales they should organize within their group and fund any commercials themselves. It has been my observation that the private sector is more efficient in promoting a product than the government could ever hope to be.
The Christmas tree tax would be just another burden that someone would have to deal with. Keeping track of all of the sales and sending in the money to the government would probably not be worth the effort. We Americans like to gripe about the intrusion of government into our lives, but with the next breath we have a bad habit of looking to the government to give us some special deal or service. This hypocrisy has been ingrained into our citizens for many years and it will take years for our people to grow out of this behavior.
I have seen lists of some of the taxes and fees that all of us are forced to pay. While many of us are appalled with some of the nonsense that we have to pay, we need to remember that somebody supports the nonsense and benefits from it. If our country is to survive our people need to understand that these special favors are costing us dearly indeed.
BY RUSSELL TURNER
A couple of days ago I read an article about the government backing off of a tax that would have added fifteen cents onto the cost of a live cut Christmas tree. After doing a little research, it was my understanding that the Tree Growers Association asked the government to collect the tax in order to boost tree sales. The group claims that the fee is not a tax and that it is similar to the “Got Milk” dairy marketing campaign and the beef industry’s “What’s for Dinner” commercials, both examples of what officials call highly successful advertising efforts which boosted sales and consumption. Imported fresh trees would have been assessed as they cross the border, and American growers would have paid in February for each fresh-cut Christmas tree sold. Small growers and all-organic tree farms were exempt. After a huge outcry from conservative groups, the Obama Administration has canceled the implementation of this new tax.
While the fifteen cents would probably not break anyone’s bank, I do not feel that it is in the scope of government functions to get into the business of promoting the sale of Christmas trees. I believe that the least that government can be involved in our private business the better. The mentality that far too many of our people have adopted is one of the driving forces of the problems that we are experiencing in our country today. I feel that if the Tree Growers Association wants to increase their sales they should organize within their group and fund any commercials themselves. It has been my observation that the private sector is more efficient in promoting a product than the government could ever hope to be.
The Christmas tree tax would be just another burden that someone would have to deal with. Keeping track of all of the sales and sending in the money to the government would probably not be worth the effort. We Americans like to gripe about the intrusion of government into our lives, but with the next breath we have a bad habit of looking to the government to give us some special deal or service. This hypocrisy has been ingrained into our citizens for many years and it will take years for our people to grow out of this behavior.
I have seen lists of some of the taxes and fees that all of us are forced to pay. While many of us are appalled with some of the nonsense that we have to pay, we need to remember that somebody supports the nonsense and benefits from it. If our country is to survive our people need to understand that these special favors are costing us dearly indeed.
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