So, here I sit, Day 8 of the State of Minnesota government shutdown, and it absolutely makes me sick. Now, before you guys start attacking me as a left wing nutjob, hear me out. I’m NOT saying that Liberals are 100% right, not at all. I consider myself, overall, a middle of the road conservative.
With that said, I have been hearing a lot and reading a lot of republican and democrat comments on this whole issue and it makes me absolutely sick. For those of you who don’t know, the state of MN has basically shut down over a budget debate of 1.2 billion dollars. That’s the difference between the GOP’s budget proposal of 34 billion and Mark Dayton’s proposed budget of 35.2 (down over half from where he really wanted to be). Before we go further, the state budget office actually said that in order to continue to operate at current levels we needed to have a budget of 39 billion dollars. So, both proposals have cuts in them. I get that, I want cuts too. The economy is hurting, and everyone is having to cut back (well, unless you were a millionaire to begin with, your doing fine). Now, its not the actual budget amounts that have me sick to my stomach, its hearing these “so-called” christians sit there and say “we don’t need government, shut it down, these people are needy assholes and should GET A JOB!”. First off, let me educate you on something. Many of the people on welfare would LOVE to work. Not all, but in MN it IS a requirement to work or to attempt to work, or to go to school, to be on welfare. Secondly, the reason we have a shrinking bottom line is because people are making LESS now than ever before. Those good rich millionaires, who said that cutting taxes would CREATE jobs in the past 20 years, have actually used those tax breaks to OUTSOURCE jobs to other countries to save a buck, and improve the bottom line. The average American now makes EXACTLY what they did 20 years ago, while the executives now make 20-30% more. So, forgive me when I think to myself “millionaires should pay more taxes”. If you want to outsource jobs so that people can no longer afford to live on simple wages and need to depend on the government for healthcare, daycare, etc, then YOU SHOULD PAY MORE. Especially since you beg and plead for corporate tax breaks, and usually get them.
Putting that aside, I know there is government waste, I see it EVERY DAY. That needs to be cleaned up, and even that isn’t where I take my issue. My issue is people who want to cut everything to the bone, not take care of infrastructure, not pay for roads, school, public transportation, or any number of public services because “they don’t use it”. Well, I don’t use the fire department, we should probably stop funding that huh? Or maybe, just maybe, some services are there for people who want to use them, and do serve towards a more common good. Police keep criminals off our streets, fire departments make sure the damn buildings don’t burn to the ground, roads are built so we can get places, etc. Public transportation exists as a benefit to ease our road system, so that those of us who drive can do so better. Don’t believe me? Keep our government shut down for 2-3 months until the buses stop.
Welfare programs SHOULD exist. Yes, I have been dealt some pretty nice cards. I go to work every day, I make a decent living, and I depend on nobody but myself financially. I have about 6 months of expenses saved up in my bank account, should something happen to me. But, lets say something bad happens, like I get sick and can’t work for a while. I want to work, but I don’t have the energy due to my sickness. Not only has my health insurance been cancelled, but now I don’t know what I’m going to do to cover my bills. Private industry won’t help me, because it doesn’t help their investors. After all, private enterprise isn’t a charity, and I get that. So what do I do, die? Sounds like someone is choosing my fate for me, huh?
And then there are those that bust their asses every day, working harder than most republicans at the top ever will. (Hell, probably making another republican rich, by making them money). But, they don’t make enough money to afford childcare. So, they get some help from the state. Should those people stop working all together, and go on welfare, or should they get childcare assistance, so they can continue to contribute to our economy?
