BY RUSSELL TURNER
WHICH SIDE OF THE DOOR
It is a simple fact that the position that we hold on any issue is influenced by our experiences and things that we have had to endure in life. The current budget shortfall here in the state of Oklahoma reminds me of a fact that I was told about many years ago. Time is relative to what you are doing, and what you want to do. It is a simple fact that time passes slower to the person dancing on one foot waiting to get into the restroom than to the person who is currently occupying that space. In essence, a person’s opinion depends on which side of the door he in on.
A couple days ago the news came out that the state of Oklahoma had a revenue failure; with all the high priced consultants and projections the reality is simple, our government is simply spending more money than is coming in. Some people are already screaming that taxes need to be raised to keep up current funding and to increase wages for the education system. Over the past several months education funding has been one of the major topics on the evening news. The education lobby has complained that they haven’t had a raise since 2008, essentially saying that their wages are stagnant, yet they get a step increase every year. One state senator is clamoring for a $10,000.00 across the board raise for all educators and massive taxes on services to fund the raise. I want to offer a perspective of what the private sector is experiencing.
Countless small businesses in the state are not experiencing a stagnant income; they are experiencing a decline in income. These elected elitists evidently are so far removed from reality that they cannot understand that all of these additional taxes will only make a bad situation worse. Many of the people in the private sector wish they could make what they did just a few years ago. They know that forcing new taxes on the service industries will cause mountains of additional paperwork and will result in less money to live on. I guess that whatever we do for a living could be considered a service. I guess even education could be a service, I just wonder what kind of outcry there would be if a tax was levied on the service of education and all teachers would be forced to pay a tax on teaching in addition to their yearly income tax? I can bet you that there would be a good market for tar and feathers. If you are in the public system mull over what I have just said and you may get a better idea of how we in the private sector feel.
We need to remember that the farmers, auto mechanics, plumbers, etc. also want a better life for themselves and their families. These people are already struggling to pay for their children’s education, paying the everyday bills and trying and often failing to provide for healthcare and retirement. Before we allow ourselves to be manipulated by the government elites and the news media we need to remember the analogy about which side of the door of the restroom you are on.
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