Taxed Enough Already?

The Tea Party is over, but the sentiment remains

Photo by Alexander Grey on Unsplas

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Consider Sammy, a recently licensed nurse. She delighted in her new income, considerably above average. When tax time came, though, she was stunned. “I have to pay that much? Why? What do I get for it?” As often as I’ve heard that question (that complaint), I’ve never had a ready response. This post is the conversation I would like to have.

What do you get?

Let’s start with the day you were born. In a hospital, right? Were you (was your mother) happy with your care? Glad to hear it. Somewhere between 1/3 to ½ of that hospital’s expenses were paid by government.

But there’s so much wrong with our health care system: Uneven coverage, outrageous surprise bills, delays in treatment . . .

Tell me about it. I spent my professional life on the subject. But would you rather live in Egypt? Nigeria? China? Most of their health care is paid out of pocket. On the other hand, countries with better systems – like Denmark, Japan, Australia – usually have higher tax rates than we do. Think there might be a connection?

Or, fast forwarding, that Singulaire you took this morning: You trust that it’s safe, right? Because the FDA has a rigorous testing and approval process. 

But the FDA doesn’t always get things right

True. No institution is fail-safe. But what happens in countries where there is no (taxpayer-funded) testing and approval? Want to guess?

More on Singulaire (and all prescription drugs): The basic science was publicly funded. Your tax dollars at work. (Industry continued the research when a profit-making drug looked possible.)

Staying with today: You went to work this morning. Your salary, as a health care professional, comes in part from the government, which covers about half of all health care spending. Some of your nursing education was partly funded by the government (that is, by your tax money). Not to mention your 12 years of primary and secondary education.

But the public schools I went to were terrible.

Once again, true. Michigan public schools vary hugely. But there are countries where no public schools fail -- Bhutan, Oman --  because there are none. Think that would be better?

It’s not just you (and not just me). Everyone around you is educated, many highly so. The more educated its population, the more affluent the country. Our literate neighbors invent, make, buy and sell things, understand and follow rules. Educating other people’s kids helps us all.

Years ago your mom, overwhelmed with kids and job, snatched a little time every day just for herself, in a city park. It kept her sane. And you’ve just taken up camping, in state parks . . .  supported by state and federal funds.  By your tax money. 

You trust the water coming out of your tap, too?

After Flint, not so much.

Got it. So keep pressuring the state government to do better. But be glad you weren’t born in the 1800s, before cities purified their water. Not even your great grandpa remembers cholera (or typhoid) – but his own grandparents lived with them and died from them. By the way, your uncle, the chemical engineer, helps keep your water safe. Guess what (who) pays his salary?

Speaking of engineering, if we were hit by an earthquake of the magnitude that has devastated Turkey and Syria, most of our buildings would stand. Our government enforces construction codes (and has emergency responders ready for when they fail). Again, imperfect. Again, so much better than nothing.

I could go on and on, but in a nutshell: In one way or another, government expenditures quietly underpin most of what we do. It needs your taxes to keep doing that. And this will probably surprise you, but our taxes are lower than almost any other wealthy country.

Why are those basic facts so unrecognized?  

Good governance, like good housekeeping, isn’t noticed except when it’s missing. The spotlight goes to buildings that fall, to water that’s poisoned; never to the buildings that stand, the water that’s safe. Few programs are perfect,  and in a vigorous democracy (let alone one that’s so polarized) a lot of energy goes toward highlighting its failures.

But the government is largely forbidden to brag about itself. Corporations fill the airwaves with the wonders of a new phone or the superlative fizz in Pepsi.  About all the government can do is a little tag here and there: “Your tax money at work.”

Of course there’s plenty wrong, from waste and fraud through immoral policies.  My tax money through most of my lifetime has subsidized wars – the killing and maiming of human beings – which I consider deeply immoral. But what’s wrong does not erase what’s right.  It remains true that my own education, health, and safety depend massively on what those taxes have done — not just for me, but for everyone around me.

Taxed enough? More likely, we’re taxed too little. But that’s a topic for another day.

AfterWords

• “Vigorous democracy” is a polite term for what, currently, might be called vicious infighting. Energetic pursuit of the common good would feel quite different. We overdo our criticism, oversimplify it, and weaponize it.

• The last presidential candidate honorable enough to tell the truth on taxes: Walter Mondale, 1984. “Mr. Reagan will raise taxes, and so will I. He won’t tell you. I just did.” His candor was suicidal, and no candidate since has dared to follow suit. (He was right: Reagan did raise taxes.)

• A few years back, Oregon closed schools three weeks early rather than raise taxes. I was in Canada at the time, and remember their shock. One column said “We must not become like the Yanks!”