Obama recently unveiled a new plan for his budget, and there are a lot of cuts that are on the way for people who are below the poverty line. If you're a graduate student, your funds are about to be cut. If you use assistance to heat your home in the winter expect things to get a little chillier, if you're a graduate student with federal grants start flipping burgers, and if you work but cannot make ends meet witness the rope getting shorter. The plan is to knock down the debt by 1.1 trillion dollars over the next ten years, which is actually a small number compare to the national debt being at 14 trillion dollars and climbing (Source: http://www.usdebtclock.org/). While there may be several people who think this is progressive and forward thinking, let me introduce you to a few ways this is actually counter-productive towards the debt.
First off, you are targeting people who do not have much money to give. When the rich constantly rob from the poor denizens of the country, they are bankrupting the entire economy. The lower classes are the consumers who buy the products manufacturers and corporations sell. When the money becomes spread too thin between paying student loans, taxes, and costs of living, then people are unable to stimulate the economy through buying items of affluence. It's like cutting the economy off at the knees. In addition, any money paid for imports leaves the country and does not recirculate into the hands of Americans. Couple this with the increasing amount of outsourcing we're doing, and you have a recipe for an economic apocalypse.
Next, why not take it from out of the hides of those who can afford it? The rich and affluent people constantly cry about paying too much in taxes. I say let them whine and eat caviar while doing it. We should be making them pay more; they earned more so it's only fair for them to pay a higher percentage. The tax cuts should not have gone across the board as they have done, they should have been reserved for the lower classes to make up for the huge deficit the real estate, banking, and automotive companies that the people in the higher income bracket own. Washington can hand taxpayer money over to rich people who think it's not okay for tax dollars to go to underprivileged or poverty-stricken families on welfare and other state assistance programs, but cannot help stimulate the American economy by demanding the rich pay more and give the lower classes a break? I suppose that's because Washington doesn't really run the country, they are just the front-men for the corporate influence that runs the United States.
Finally, the military industrial complex that has become so bloated that they gobble up most of those tax dollars at work. If you hate the war, find a way to stop paying taxes. The spending alone has topped 600 BILLION, and after you factor in everything that has to do with defense(FBI, Homeland Security, NASA Satellites, R&D, etc) price tag tops out at over 1.4 TRILLION DOLLARS. A YEAR. Ask yourself this question, before you ask any senators or congressman: "Do we really NEED that much defense?" When is the last time someone actually invaded American soil? The 1700's (Revolutionary War) or 1800's(Spanish-American War), perhaps? The defense budget's gargantuan number completely dwarfs the education finances which was 46.8 billion dollar in 2010 and is set for 49.7 billion dollars this year. All this for an "average" education experience that is ranked 14th to 17th among industrial nations. Shouldn't we expect better from out government? Why is there always enough money for bombs but never enough for books? According to the White House, the military is 19.2% of the budget for 2012. Education? 2.7% of the budget. There is a tank-sized elephant in the room, and it's called the military industrial complex.
Obama's pitching hope and change, but the only thing he has managed to do with this budget is maintain the status-quo: War is more important than education.
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