Dear Editor:

If all the wealth of the world was divided equally among all the people in the world, within days there would again be “rich” and “poor”.

The false premise that the wealth of citizens belongs to the government and may be redistributed at its discretion remains unquestioned, unchallenged and even accepted by many Americans. Liberal politicians with power to tax and spend at their discretion may feel an obligation and great debt to their fellow man and propose to pay off with your money; others may wish to “bail-out” their friends and business partners with loans, credit, rebates, tax credits, etc. In either case, it is not their money. The Constitution does not guarantee happiness nor does it provide for reimbursements.

Politicians would have us believe that an omnipotent government will benefit us all and enhance individual rights; this is as oxymoronic as you can get. This only fosters the delusion that we can all live at the expense of everybody else. Thomas Jefferson warned that a “government big enough to give you everything you want is strong enough to take everything you have”.

The power and control that comes with the “power of the purse” is immeasurable. Politicians know that if they “rob” Peter to pay Paul, Peter belonging to the upper 5% income bracket and Paul to the remaining 95%, they can count on the support of the Pauls.

The writer P.J. O’Rourke observed, “Giving money and power to the government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys.”

Sincerely,

Ed Konecnik

Flushing