From the Other Side of the Edge…
It’s Time…..Flat Tax, Term Limits, Amnesty, End Welfare….
By Joe Facinoli 

Times have changed, so it’s about time that we dealt with it.  

The time for making everything just oh so perfect, for every, single, body,…..has passed.  

We need to go back to the start, before we can go on to the future. 

Re-set, rewind, re-boot, do over, do not pass “Go” this time.  

Do it again, similarly, but different.   Change it, by restoring it.  

Return to the wise and prudent place, where we should have been, all along.    To where we’ll find the good, original intentions, for virtually all of our troublesome issues of today.

Back to where it makes sense, finally, and again. 

Almost all levels and sectors of our society share in what’s ailing us right now.   All social strata, classes, and networks, all economic endeavors and pathways, and all political questions, dealings, and issues, are not only effected, but are completely intertwined and interconnected now, and much too dependent upon each other.   

So much so, that our end product from the endless decades of this runaway, leaderless interaction, and utter neglect, is now the worst possible combination of the “Butterfly Effect”, and a House of Cards.  

One area cannot be fixed, nor changed, without creating havoc in another, which is then problematic for the first one, and then on to the other areas, and then on and on, until we end up with…..well,….what we have now.  

So, what to do??

Here’s Four Fundamental Things (and maybe a couple of others) that at least one of us believes are “must do” items, for right here, and right now, and that are absolutely necessary “no brainers” for our nation’s future economic, political, and cultural security.   

And this same person is convinced that if they are not implemented within the time it takes to read these words, then our “kick the can down the road” country will indeed be toast, and quicker than it takes Congress to scatter like ants (or cockroaches), when any budgetary matter comes up for a vote.  

In other words, we’ll be done, done, done.   To a crisp, crisp, crisp.   And it’s already started. 

These won’t taste so good at first, trying to get them down, and past our ever resistant tonsils.   But, if we lose all of the self-serving, preconceived prejudices and false dogmas which are pounded into us constantly, we’ll be able to see that these proposals won’t actually hurt anyone very much at all (at least not anyone who shouldn’t be hurt by them).    

And they might just quickly cure many of the major ills we suffer from now, together, with just one fell swoop, one smooth pass, right through the “old school”, last crooked politician standing, “we’ve always done it this way, so why change now”, never-never land of a gridlocked world, where we all now reside.   

So here we go.   Hold your nose, if you like, cover your ears, if you must, but do open your eyes, and your mind, to the possibilities of these ideas, and that they just might work. 

1)   Implement a Flat Tax.   For all businesses and individuals.   No exemptions, deductions, deferments, discounts, nor shelters.   Everyone pays the same, even the ones getting government checks.

It’s the fairest way, and as the greatest side benefit, it eliminates the IRS (especially attractive right now, but should have happened long ago).  

All tax forms are one page.   How much money did you make last year?   Send in 10%.    Done.   If you made $100, you pay $10.   If you made $1 million, you pay $100K.   If you “down and outs”, and “where’s my free stuff” entitled folks have a problem with that,…..work harder.   Life is tough, deal with it.  

The entire tax code, for everything, would only be three pages, including the postage paid return envelope.  
  

2)   Term Limits for both houses of Congress, and for all state legislatures.    I mean,…..really, do we even have to think about this one?    Legislative governmental service was never meant to be a career.

Even the President is only allowed two terms now, so why shouldn’t this apply to all those freeloaders and crooks who continually have their hand in our pants (in whatever way you want to imagine) for decades on end??!! 

The good ones will find other worthwhile pursuits, and will benefit us wherever they land.   But we will be rid of the bad and corrupt ones, before they can do so much harm, as happens once they gain all that unquestioned power, which comes with longevity. 

I’d even go a step further, and require that they have to work for at least five years in private business, in an administrative capacity (and preferably one with budgetary responsibility), before they can even run for one of these offices.  

3)   Amnesty (with a purpose, and a common sense, real life plan) for all illegal aliens currently here. 

Alright, so this one will be a little harder to swallow than the rest.  

But if you live out there, on the street, and in the trenches with them, as I do (trying to get Americans to do the work these folks do every day), then you know now that there is truly no other way. 

If for no other good reason, than it’s just simply time to put this insanity  (created by us, not them), aside, and start over.  

It wasn’t their idea to give them a free lunch, on steroids, to give them all the benefits that Americans can get (and that’s way too much too, ….more on that below), and to make it so attractive to be here, and so safe and carefree, that whole countries have practically transplanted entire populations.

Who thought that was a good idea???    And why didn’t we stop it? 

My plan:   Every illegal has 3 months to register, officially, with the state where they are located, or with the feds.   Then they have 18 months to get legal.   Green card, permanent resident, work permit, student visa, or U.S. citizen.   

Their choice, doesn’t matter which.    If they don’t register, or don’t get “legal” in time,……then they’re gone,…..forever.    If they try to come back, they’ll be put in a U.S. jail, for a minimum of 15 years.  

And no more handouts!   Earn your way, pay your taxes, or be gone from here.   Families too.   No more anchor babies, either.   The kids born here can stay (as the 14th amendment mandates), but the parents must earn it,…..or they’re gone.  

We need them here, at least the good, hard-working ones, like the ones I know and hire, but this insanity needs to stop.   And the only way now, is to start over.  

From the day this plan goes into effect, everyone else who wants in, and is not here already, must do it the right, much more streamlined, and fair way.   With a yes or a no in months, not years.  

Sorry, but we gotta do something, and we gotta start somewhere.  

4)  NO MORE WELFARE!!!    No matter what happens to the other things above, this economic atrocity, travesty, tragedy, and insanity, just absolutely, positively, can’t fail to happen, HAS to stop!!!!

There are exceptions, of course, and they should be handled, with dignity and care.    But for the vast majority, this has been out of control (and bankrupting us) for decades.   

You don’t work, you don’t get money.   That’s the way it is in private business, so why should anyone get a handout without doing anything for it????  

The government initiated, government induced, government implemented (but paid for by us) gravy train ride needs to be over.   Now!!

Even FDR, who started a lot of this liberal hand holding, had the Works Progress Administration (WPA), and the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), in the ‘30s.    Everyone enrolled got paid, but everyone enrolled also worked their butts off, doing very hard work, the results of which can still be seen, around this country today.  

You make a dollar, we pay you another dollar, if necessary.   But not forever!

Unemployment:   3 months max.   Change fields, trades, move, whatever.   Life is hard, deal with it!

Social Security:    Only for retirement.    NO exceptions!   Other needs should be dealt with from other sources of money, NOT with people’s retirement funds!   PERIOD!!! 

It is well understood that there are, and will be, large repercussions and issues with any of these topics.   Not the least of which would be massive lifestyle changes, and even economic (temporary) hardship, for millions of people.  

But they must be addressed.  

And they must happen, in some form, close to that which I have laid out.   We have no choice.    

It’s time.   

Joe Facinoli

(Joe can be reached at:  joefacinoli@gmail.com )

Intelligent Response Encouraged!!
© Copyright 2013, Joe Facinoli