Wednesday, April 15, 2009

The Invisible Tea Parties.

Reports on the attendance to the Tax Day Tea Parties across Michigan are quite impressive, from the several hundreds to the few thousands at several locations across the state. If such enthusiasm is being repeated in other states, this event is remarkable.
But not to the New York Times, who confines their coverage to a derisive blog entry.
Tax Day.

We have a real fear - yes, fear - that our government is going past the point of no return on spending and taxes. Entitlements now constitute 38% of the federal budget; including quasi-entitlement social program spending brings the total to 57%. Service on the debt adds another 9%, defense accounts for another 20%. This does include the new bailout and stimulus spending.

It's clear that there is no political gain for any leader to restrain entitlements: it will require an act of political sacrifice by the country's leadership to bring this under control. If the President could bring this financial hemorrhaging to an end, would he sacrifice a second term to bring it about?