Sat
Aug 2 2008
01:50:pm
Melton favors Taxpayer Bill of Rights
By: R. Neal  shortURL

Maryville Daily Times

A Taxpayer Bill of Rights would keep state spending under control, Melton said.

"That provides for controlling spending and controlling increases in taxes ... (after) two years of surpluses, the surplus would be refunded to the taxpayers. Right now it's spent, which increases spending for the next cycle. We need to get some kind of controls on spending. Taxes are not the issue. Spending is the issue."

I used to think this was an idea worth at least discussing.

But then I recalled the words of conservative idiot Grover Norquist, who said "I don't want to abolish government. I simply want to reduce it to the size where I can drag it into the bathroom and drown it in the bathtub."

Here's the truth about the Taxpayer Bill of Rights from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities:

TABOR shrinks the scope of what government can accomplish and creates conditions that each year pit programs and services against each other for survival. And once such limits are embedded in a state constitution, they usually cannot be removed or modified. They undermine existing services for children, youth, and families and make any new initiatives virtually impossible to undertake.

In Colorado- the only state with a TABOR, voters decided in November 2005 to suspend their TABOR amendment for five years so that the state could begin restoring cuts in public services and avoid making even more drastic cuts.

That's what this is really all about. We're not satisfied being near last in education, health care, etc. We're clawing our way to the bottom, and these "no tax" conservatives pander to low-information voters who haven't figured that out yet.

Topics:

Keeping government as small

Submitted by JosephBaileyOne on Thu, 08/07/2008 - 21:50.

Keeping government as small as possible and quite frankly, letting them fight over crumbs is how to stay free. For example, there is absolutely NO NEED WHATSOEVER for one red cent to be increased to any public school system in this nation much less here in Blount County. The sheer volume of waste, corruption, and mismanagement in public education dwarfs every other field or private sector business. You want to be near the top in eduction then you eliminate the Central Office's, make mandatory Term Limits on School Board members, and fire half of the pathetic teachers in this land and tell the others that they are on Commission. There is no, and I repeat no motivation for any teacher anywhere to educate a student save for that teacher's personal motivation to see their students achieve. All of this crying about NCLB (which should have never been passed, btw) is just another excuse for the large number of educators in the public school system to NOT do their job. In fact, eliminating entirely the public school system in this area and nation would be the single best act of responsible government in the history of America. Taxpayers like this one are sick of seeing how my tax money (and it is mine and every other Citizens') is just wasted on some unnecessary government program that is nothing more than welfare. Especially the corporate welfare given to so many businesses that do NOT need it. The best way to see this waste stopped is to have a TABOR.

The US Constitution, read it, live it, and protect is at all costs. It is what makes us American and let's us live free.

Schools

Submitted by our-town on Wed, 08/06/2008 - 12:09.

I just want to make sure I have this right JosephBaileyOne, you want to get rid of schools and not educate our children? And what would you base the commission on that you propose to put the teachers on? Have YOU ever worked on commission or tips? How do you expect the next generation to be able to carry on business if they are not educated? Or do you think that only the children of parents who can afford to send their children to private schools should be able to work. Talk about welfare. Or maybe you believe that if they are not able to work because they don't even know simple math or english, that they should starve.

Please state were I wrote

Submitted by JosephBaileyOne on Thu, 08/07/2008 - 21:48.

Please state were I wrote "not to educate our children?"

I would base that commission on students who actually graduate or test out on achievement tests.

Yes, I have worked exactly like I would hope that teachers would get paid.

The next generation is getting absolutely nothing from most public school teachers now so ending public education and letting the parents do their job will do more to educate them than the crap we have now. The "public school system" now in place in the USA is more about a welfare plan than it is about actual education. Idea's such as academic achievement are so far removed from public education that it is beyond even joking about. Public schooling is the single biggest taxpayer nightmare facing this nation and will bankrupt the Treasury more than Iraq will if it is not ended within the next decade or so. Public school teachers are more about their complaining agenda of what they CANNOT DO and not what they CAN DO. Finding a way to motivate them and also changing the income method in a way that would prune out the losers would, if public education is to be kept, only make for top quality Educators to stay in it.

The next time you want to reply to a post I make, try sticking to what I write instead of the immature rant you made in this one.

The US Constitution, read it, live it, and protect is at all costs. It is what makes us American and let's us live free.

Hmmm, based on the school

Submitted by R. Neal on Thu, 08/07/2008 - 21:50.

Hmmm, based on the school teachers I know and have known v. your stupid rant, I'm going with the school teachers. I hope I never have to wait for one of your non-public-educated kids to count out change at Burger King, or design a cold fusion reactor. Unless you are posting from India, in which case I take it all back. Oh, wait. India has massive government funded education programs. So you clearly aren't posting from there.

Well, the numbers don't lie.

Submitted by JosephBaileyOne on Thu, 08/07/2008 - 22:46.

Well, the numbers don't lie. Private educated and Home Schooled students outperform public ones by leaps and bounds. Tell those teachers and those parents how stupid they are and while you are at it, be sure to let that Judge Young know that you hate Indians. That way, if you ever end up in his Courtroom he will know you are a bigot and rule in your favor.

The US Constitution, read it, live it, and protect is at all costs. It is what makes us American and let's us live free.

Uh, I was saying that

Submitted by R. Neal on Thu, 08/07/2008 - 22:55.

Uh, I was saying that Indians are better educated and their government is more committed to education than ours. Guess you didn't pay attention in 5th grade reading class. Hope your kids do better, so they can count my change at Burger King. Bye!

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