What a novel idea :P

Lately, I've been listening to talk radio on my way to and from work. It started because I was too tired to listen to music that early in the morning. I just wanted something that allowed me to wake up a little more slowly than high energy country music does. That being said, it's basically impossible to not hear all of the drama that is going on with the election coming up.

Knowing that Obama's main plan is to raise the amount of taxes that the rich pay and that Romney is planning on cutting government spending (or so they both say. I have a feeling that Obama's is more likely to happen than Romney's, for the simple reason that it's easier to say that you will cut spending, than it is to actually do it.) One's plan is to spend less, the other's is to bring in more revenue. Neither one's plan seems to be too terribly popular, although, for those in the lower and middle classes, Obama's plan seems to be more popular than Romney's. He is, after all, making life easier for the less fortunate. Robin Hood comes to mind. The difference between President Obama and Robin Hood, however, is that Robin Hood was fighting injustice and the practice the rich had of stealing from the poor in order to make themselves more comfortable. Conversely, the rich in America have actually worked for their money. It is understandable then, that the rich would want to hold on to the money they have worked so hard to obtain. When that happens, you wind up with a demographic that isn't very happy with its leadership.

The thing that I find interesting in all of this, is that the presidential race itself costs each candidate close to a billion dollars. The national debt is about 16 trillion dollars. While I understand that there is a large gap between a billion dollars and 16 trillion, if the candidates are able to raise that much money in 9 months that they campaign, they you would think they would be able to raise a lot more than that during the four years that they are in office. The problem is that America has more bills to pay than it has income. The way they try to fix this is by raising taxes. But when the economy is in a free fall, the american people don't have the money to contribute to the government's debt payments.

Cutting spending, I think, is still important, but to force the people to pay what they can't afford, or to take the hard earned money from the rich, isn't right. If I have worked for money, I want to be able to do with it as I see fit. If that means that I give to charities and to the less fortunate, then that's what I would do. But don't force me to give you more than my fair share. If I made more than 250,000/year, could I afford to pay a higher percentage than someone that makes 20,000/year? Of course. But that's not the issue. The issue is giving the rich the right to keep their money and use it as they see fit. Most of  the rich give quite generously to various charities, and do so with a good conscience, knowing that they have supported the causes that they feel are worthy of support.

It seems we have an interesting dilemma then. How does the government come up with the money it needs, without taxing the living daylights out of the rich (which really comes down to punishing them for their success)? Well, my suggestion would be for the President to continue fundraising AFTER he has been elected. By doing so, he allows the rich to choose to support whatever cause they desire. In addition to that, by fundraising for specific government programs instead of taking out general taxes and choosing for the people where the money will go (or at least not as much anyway) the people get to decide how their money is used. That way, if someone does not approve of a specific program, they don't have to spend more money  on it than they already are. If the standing President can campaign and raise money while still running the country, then it stands to reason that he should be able to do it consistently. Maybe not easily, but if one President could do so, and set the precedent for those that follow after, we would certainly pull ourselves out of the hole we're in a lot faster.