What is the liberal vision for America? Seriously, tell us please!

I am on my second trip to what was once Eastern Europe plus Russia. Before going to such countries my naive impression was that these people were unanimously delighted with the overthrow of Communism. In talking

with many people, especially people old enough to have lived many years under the old system, I find my impression greatly flawed. The political leaders who brought about the change and who the West holds in high esteem are not shall we say, always revered in these countries.

While people welcome their freedom and the availability of more material goods, many express regret over the loss of things provided by the state like housing, jobs, health care, etc. Oh they readily admit all of these things were very basic and poor quality by current standards, but they were taken care of for them by the state. “Taken care of” are the key words. It was explained to me they were told where to work, where they could travel, what they could own and in some cases who they could talk to. One woman told me she was shocked when she found out that fresh fruit was available all year round in the West. Another person explained you had to wait up to seventeen years to buy a car.

On the other hand there was stability; unemployment was non-existent even if the job was boring, unnecessary and non-productive. In Russia I talked to one person who despised Gorbachev because his family lost their state provided apartment, and their jobs. In other words they needed to do much more for themselves and their work required a productive purpose. In talking with many people in former eastern bloc countries it becomes clear that some would prefer the old days where basic necessities were taken care of and life was managed for them.

If you look at what this society accomplished, if you look at the buildings and infrastructure and demeanor of many older people it is depressing. I listened to one story after another about corruption and the incredible complexity of bureaucracy. Everything was dependent on the state and the whims of a relatively few people in control who by the way made sure they did not play by the rules themselves.

As I visited towns in the former East Germany, I still saw the differences between East and West more than twenty-five years after reunification. Breaking old habits is hard. Taking the leap for independence in the hope of greater rewards is difficult and for some people impossible.

In this context I listen to our friends on the liberal left (here is a good example) and think to myself, what kind of America would be their ideal? Exactly how much should government do for us from birth to death?

I listened to our President giving a campaign speech as he ran down a list of things from jobs to education, student loans, energy and on and on; his point was he wanted to solve all these “problems.” I thought to myself, how is all this the role of the federal government and what will it take in taxes and bureaucracy to manage? But more important is government the best way to solve problems? Haven’t we learned our lesson that creating welfare dependency does not help people rise to a better state of life?

And here is the rub … taxes. The problem is we don’t pay for what all the grand programs promised. While it is easy to make the case for social programs, hey, who doesn’t want free stuff, and clearly there people who need help, there are also serious consequences.

Such programs are frequently abused and inefficiently run by bureaucrats who have little reason to assure they operate efficiently and only as intended. Remember fraud and waste? Here is a recent example, take a look and this is only at the state level.

Once in place politicians cannot resist “improvements” for this group or that generally adding to costs and often inadequately funded over the long-term. Politicians use programs to appeal to voters in their self-interest. The President wants to hold down the rate of increase in college tuition by giving states $1 billion if they slow the rate of increase. As with health care, rather than deal with the root causes of the problem, we throw federal money at the symptom. Individuals become dependent on the programs sometimes with limited motivation to wean themselves from them and often facing disincentives to do so. Given these programs are funded from taxes; an entitlement mentality develops reinforcing the idea I am only getting what I paid for and therefore what I am entitled to. Voters, seeking to preserve their benefits vote for politicians promising to do so with little regard to long-term or unintended consequences for society as a whole. Fraud and abuse are rationalized.

Pulling on heart-strings, appealing to emotion and playing on real life stories of “average” people who struggle may sound empathetic, but it can be a trap. Not only does that ultimately lead to more dependency, but it also makes their struggle harder. Promises can’t be met without the ability to pay which requires all Americans to be productive and paying taxes.

Consider this comment on this blog (regarding the 2013 Social Security COLA). Does this sound like a person who has become dependent on ever-increasing benefits? Rather than automatically increasing these benefits shouldn’t our goal be income self-sufficiency after a lifetime of work? I have not corrected the spelling.

THEY NEED THERE WAGES CUT, REAL BAD BECAUSE THEY DO NOT DO ANYTHING BUT DISAGREE ABOUT EVERYTHING, WHILE WE SEAT OUT HERE AND STARVE. HOPEING FOR AT LEAST ENOUGH COLA TO BUY BREAD AND A GALLON OF GAS

Look at all the comments on this blog related to the 2013 Social Security COLA. Even though the COLA is fixed by law and reflects inflation (some say too generously for the senior population), many people think they are getting screwed when inflation dictates a low or no COLA … I’m entitled to an increase every year regardless seems to be a frequent perception.

Social Security both old age and disability benefits are out of control. Millions of Americans have moved from unemployed to disabled in the blink of an eye or should I say at the expiration of one benefit. Obamacare promises to subsidize health care for families making up to $88,000 a year meaning if you get a raise to $89,000 (actually more than four times the poverty level) you may have less take home pay. In other words we have set in place a trap for the middle class. Food stamp use is exploding making it counterproductive for some low-income families to earn a higher income.

On one hand people believe they paid for their benefits and thus earned them regardless of fiscal concerns. On the other hand they feel they pay too much for someone else’s benefits when in fact growing debt is paying for more and more benefits for everyone.

While Rome or more correctly Washington burns (through money), our priorities include free contraceptives for every woman and well-educated, affluent women find that appealing and important. Is that what liberalism means? While we agonize over our education system liberals see part of the solution as keeping student loan interest rates low instead of focusing on the cost of an education and the true value for the money spent. At the same time they climb in bed with teacher unions that frequently block true reform for no other reason than self-preservation.

Tell me please, what do progressives want; what does the ideal America look like for a liberal? Where do you draw the line between individual responsibility and government support and dependency? As Paul Krugman says, what is the conscious of a liberal?

Really guys, if you consider yourself a liberal, progressive of even socialist, what is your vision for America? How will you find the money to pay for that vision and how does creating more dependency help the middle class?