Mystery Novelist and Industrialist Digger Cartwright Comments on the Direction of America
Orlando, FL (PRWEB) November 5, 2008—The office of Digger Cartwright, mystery novelist and industrialist, recently released Mr. Cartwright’s following comments on the direction of the United States.
“In light of the recent election, I am deeply concerned about the direction in which our country is heading. Senator Obama was not a candidate that I would have supported. Recall I supported Fred Thompson, and I still believe he would have been the best candidate. But putting that aside, I am disappointed in the choice of the American people for both President of the United States and control of the Congress. I am not sure that the American people were really voting for the best candidates this year. I believe that many voted for the Democratic Party and would have voted for the Democratic Party even if their candidate had been Mickey Mouse simply because it was their way of voicing their disgust with the Republican Party and the administration of President George W. Bush.
“I believe this behaviour will have devastating consequences for our country. I have long been a supporter of President Bush, and I will not go into defending him or his record here. But just because I have been a staunch supporter of the President does not mean that I have wholeheartedly endorsed all of his decisions and all of the policies of the Administration. Quite to the contrary, I have been a vocal critic of the economic stimulus plan from back in the spring and the current bailouts of the banks, AIG, etc. But to many, many Americans this election represented an opportunity to punish the President and the Republican Party. Those who voted simply to register an anti-Bush or anti-Republican vote have done a grave disservice to themselves, their children, and their countrymen.
“Come January we will have a new president. President-elect Obama will have his chance to show the people what he means by his campaign for change. To be sure, the President-elect is a gifted speaker. He speaks very eloquently, but even though he says a lot, he actually says quite little. He is a talented politician, and though many have attempted to disqualify him because of his relative lack of experience, I do not find fault in him for that. I do not believe that anyone is ever really fully prepared to serve as the President. The challenges and responsibilities are far greater than we ever can realize. What deeply concerns me about the next president are his close ties with individuals of questionable character and the very platform that he espouses.
“Change always comes at a cost. In this case, his change appears to be his own professed desire to ‘spread the wealth.’ America is not about socialistic values and sharing the wealth of others. Ours is not a Robin Hood society where we take from the rich to give to the poor. America has long been revered as the ‘Land of Opportunity.’ Anyone who has the will and the heart to work hard, make sacrifices, and dedicate themselves can prosper and reap the bountiful rewards of their endeavours. There is no easy path to success and prosperity, despite what other political philosophies may seek to achieve through utopian goals of share and share alike. The desire to spread the wealth, as President-elect Obama has proposed, is a dangerously destabilizing position that will only serve to weaken America, our capitalist system, and the ideals on which this country was founded and that have made this country great.
“Change such as this will have significant and adverse financial consequences for America. The tax burden on American taxpayers and corporations will increase to levels not seen in decades. This will serve to stifle economic growth and choke the engines that move this economy and the world economy forward. There is a tried and true relationship between taxes and our country’s economic output. When taxes have been cut (as they were in 2001 and 2003), the Treasury has collected more in tax revenues than ever before. An increased tax burden is a disincentive to work and produce and be successful. But such increases in the tax burden will be necessary to fund President-elect Obama’s spending programmes. In his campaign, he promised trillions of dollars in spending programmes—most notably over $850 billion for infrastructure projects. These projects cannot be accomplished without increased borrowing by the Treasury (selling additional debt predominantly to foreigners), increased taxes, or some combination of both. In any case, the financial burden for such spending programmes is placed squarely upon the backs of the American taxpayers.
“And beyond the infrastructure spending programme, there has been reference to yet another economic stimulus plan, though the scope and magnitude of any such plan has yet to be determined. Let us not forget as well the promise of ‘socialized medicine.’ Now, some would say that is not what the President-elect has in mind, but based on his campaign promises that is what it boils down to. Let’s call a spade a spade. This is yet another step towards socialism that will have to be paid for by the taxpayers. If anyone thinks healthcare is expensive now, just wait until it is free. Any such plan, should it be passed by the Congress, would necessitate a massive tax increase on the American people. Payroll taxes would likely increase, personal income tax rates would increase, and the burden on small businesses who would be mandated to pay for this socialist policy for workers would be so great as to likely bankrupt many of them or at least make them so uncompetitive that they ultimately fold.
“To me, it is frightening to think that this country may be trending towards socialism and that the American people have willfully elected a man and a party who will seek those socialist policies that go against the grain of everything America stands for. It is almost as if the voters have been duped into voting for a great orator who promises a utopian society for them. I suppose it would be only natural for many of them to be mesmerized by such a prospect, particularly at a time when so many of them are disenfranchised with current events and the policies of an administration that has unfairly been made unpopular by a liberal media with a hidden agenda.
“I have seen the ills that socialism has wrought on other countries. Even quasi-socialist policies have a way of ultimately morphing into full socialism. Whilst those at the very bottom of the socio-economic ladder may benefit, all other peoples in society-—the middle class, the upper class, the everyday small business owner-—suffer as a result of socialist policies. The suffering comes not only in the form of higher financial burdens upon the people but also from another simple relationship that as government expands with ‘social programmes,’ individual liberties begin to contract. I can only hope that the American people will never allow this to happen, but my current sentiments seem only to build a false hope and a false sense of security.
“There is nothing more demoralizing for small business owners, large business owners, and workers who have built a good life for themselves than the prospect that the fruits of their labours will be slowly taxed away by a money-hungry Democratic Congress who seeks to take from those who have achieved and give it to those who have never applied themselves. We must be vigilant. We must not blindly allow the Congress and the in-coming administration to go unchecked with expanding socialist policies. The toughest days of our generation may well lie ahead as we determine whether we remain a land of the free or become a nation of workers enslaved to a socialist government.”
