RateItAll: The Opinion Network

INPORTANT times of stupid worries, now thats what I'm talking about! What the hell are you all reading, why not do the things we were all called to do and see? When its the end after walking through the light we will all be home.

You mean there's some money left? Oh, that's right...it's tax season again.

Oh, well. . .we didn't need fiscal responsibility anyway!

Always good with any administration, but won't happen at a time of war.

Nice idea but won't happen. The war is costing a fortune. That's OK. At least that effort by the federal government is provided for in the Federal Constitution. In order to balance the budget, W would have to make cuts that neither his party nor the opposition would be willing to accept. And that won't be happening any time soon.

A nice goal, but it's all talk. Republicans have racked up the largest deficits over the past few decades. It's just in their nature I guess.

Absolutely. I can see no argument that says governments can run deficits ad infinitum without future problems.

Clinton did it!

Extemely important! I'd give the Bush machine a ZERO. I agree, we'd all be in jail if we ran around writing bad checks.

If balancing the budget was such an economic crisis long term yeilds would be rising off the charts but they are not. The reality is the money is purchased within our own economy so the wash in the interest- the service- on the debt which presently constitutes less than 3.5% of our budget. Are you telling me that none of you own a house? Or own anything on credit that has a yearly servicable debt of 3.6% of your earnings? Yes we shouldn't deficit spend into dangerous territories but what we have now is quite managable for war time. Besides that it is absolutely disingenuous to blame the greedy politicians when WE ELECT THEM! WE are to blame! We demand the government fund our retirements through a rip off pyramid scheme. We refuse to pay for our health care. We refuse to realize the increased prices for education are caused by the supply of cash that increases the demand AND PRICE- which then subsequently causes the students to ask for more money. It is us who wants the police officers, firemen, the teachers, the farmers and everyone under the damn sun to make a fair wage then complain when the politicians give us just that. Where do we think this money comes from? We're all for programs like presription drugs for seniors, medicade, medicare- hell sports stadiums for our favorite teams- then we bitch when the politicians answer all our demands. IT IS US WHO IS TO BLAME! IT IS US WHO DEMANDS OUR GOVERNMENT TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE THINGS WE SHOULD DO ON OUR OWN. We the people in order to form a more perfect union have now given our liberty back for the purchase of laziness. This world is limited in time, matter and space. Until people realize that you don't have a right to it all they will never get the reduction in spending we want until the economy truly gets sick like it is in Europe. *****Foreign Aid? Foreign aid makes up a small percentage of our budget. Needless pointless programs? Yeah we could elimate all of them and would still be deficit spending. Our budget is primarily eaten up by Medicade, Medicare, Social Security (which for now is being bilked to cover up the deficit we actually are running), Education, and Defense. These are the programs that we all find so critical and necessary? Who's demands do you think the politicians are responding to? We have an obligation to be responsible and demand our government only give us what we absolutely need or can afford. Unless you forgot this is a democracy and regardless of how removed we are from the process of goverment at times- inclusive of judicial decisions- WE THE PEOPLE are responsible for the actions of government. Voters talk out of both sides of their mouths on all these issues- oh these budgets are sooooo high! ... CUT MEDICARE ARE YOU CRAZY? CUT EDUCATION SPENDING ARE YOU NUTS? PRIVATE ACCOUNTS- I'VE NEVER HEARD OF SUCH INSANITY! As our government has become increasingly more centralized to respond to the demands of IT'S VOTERS the factionalism that Madison warned us about in Federalist #10 has coalesced into powerful voting blocks that insist upon entitlements whose future obligations expand in a disproportionate manner that the government cannot meet. It is the People Themselves who are to blame- maybe not you individually but yes us in total- that's how democracies work unfortunately. ****Sorry to say but cutting things you find important is the ONLY way we will ever truly balance the budget- and my argument isn't that we shouldn't- it's that it is our fault for asking for all these important things. I don't frown on balance budgets I wish for them. But I believe two things (i) right now they're not that bad (ii) entitlement programs, most importantly future obligations for entitlement programs WE THE PEOPLE demand are breaking the system not the politicians. ****Using your logic we are the children that need to be led by big father government who tells us what we should and shouldn't get- that's not what the founders had in mind. ****Beavr, I am not arguing for unbalanced budgets. And the intent of the founders on specific subjects was very clear- that We the people in order to form a more perfect union established a government of OUR control that could be dissolved upon our wish and replaced- that's the essence of democracy. Hell you act like we don't elect these people. Both Federalists and Republicans alike, from Hamilton to Madison and Jefferson wrote voluminously as to who was the final arbiture of the ends of government- and that was the people themselves. You seem to be arguing that demo the people have no responsibility for our ridiculous demands because we're children of some sort. I think that's ludicrous.

Bush has yet to veto a spending bill after 4+ years. The tax cuts are great - but Federal spending will be our downfall.

It's all about controlling the spending. It would certainly be helpful if rank-and-file republicans grew some cojones and worked with him instead of against him. We're collecting more in taxes this year than last year, we always do. The spending is the problem and a majority of our current congressmen and senators were elected, at least partially, on platforms that promised to do this. We should hold them responsible, particularly republicans.