Simple Solutions To Complex Problems

I've said it before; I'll say it again. The masses are asses. Our leaders are stupid.

There's a crisis with Social Security. Why not remove the salary cap from the payroll tax? Why should people stop contributing to Social Security on wages they earn above $90,000? Also, why not have means tests for Social Security benefits? Why should the former head of ExxonMobil collect a Social Security monthly benefit check upon retirement?

There's a crisis with Medicare. Why doesn't the government negotiate prescription drug prices like the Veteran Administration does?

There's an energy crisis. Why isn't mass transit free? Why doesn't the government offer tax incentives for people who install solar hot water heaters and solar paneled roofs?

There's an illegal immigration crisis. First, why not hold accountable the companies who hire illegal, undocumented workers? Eliminate the opportunity for illegal immigrants to find work and you'll eliminate the illegal immigration problem. Also, instead of building triple-layered fencing along the Mexican border, why not install a series of blimps with infrared detection gear? Then law enforcement officers, or National Guard soldiers, can be quickly dispatched to arrest intruders.

There's an education crisis. Why not re-introduce a service-style draft where all young Americans are required to volunteer to serve their country for two years after completing their education? People who volunteer to serve in the armed forces ought to receive higher pay than others. Perhaps people who volunteer to teach in disadvantaged neighborhoods ought to have their student loans forgiven. Everyone should serve in some capacity. We as a nation need to return to the spirit of John F. Kennedy's New Frontier: "Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country."

Unfortunately the future looks pretty bleak. Whoever succeeds Bush is going to inherit a war in Iraq that can't be won militarily, tax cuts set to expire in 2010, and a national debt rapidly approaching $10 trillion that's growing an average of $1.78 billion per day.