Death tax to pay for elderly care is scrapped

Here's an interesting article which highlights the tug-of-war democracy always faces, once it has taken hold of a society. For this conflict is between confused and immoral voters wanting stuff from politicians but not wanting to pay for any of it, just like the vagabond thieves of an earlier age.

Everyone imagines that everyone else will be robbed by their supported politicians to pay for the stuff they get, but when so much high-cost low-quality junk is provided by these politicians, then everyone must be robbed, except for the politicians and their cronies.

Hence governments continually fly kites on increasing taxes and continually generate ideologies such as environmentalism which garner voter support for taxes, but are still frightened enough by voter backlash to back down whenever it looks like they won't get away with it.

So, here's the rub; people want free stuff to be paid for by robbing other people and voters don't want to be the ones robbed to pay for stuff for other people. As Mr Spock might say, "Fascinating".

Fortunately, in the looking glass world of democracy, both aspirations remain possible.

All you have to do is get the government's central bank to print the money and then buy government bonds with it. Then the people in the future can pay for everything. Hence, nobody now needs to be robbed. Just those people in the future who are unable to vote in today's present, because they are either children or as yet unborn.

Maybe that's why we call it 'the present'? Because 'the present' is a gift from the people of the future? Perhaps not.

Anyhow, problem solved. Nobody pays and the government gets to spend as much as it wants on anything and everything, for everybody and everyone. Welcome to the Land of Cockayne.

And if you believe that this is actually possible in a physical world of scarce resources, on a permanent basis, then you probably also believe that the world global recession is over and that the retail markets are in the doldrums because it's a bit nippy for the time of year.

I'm afraid, however, that I'm going to have to ask you to stop sipping the fairy potions and stop nibbling on the elf cakes, which have induced you to believe this. Because something terrible has happened, despite four decades of the politicians having successfully put it off, due to money printing and government bond buying, since the world came off the last feeble shreds of a partial global gold standard.

Welcome to the future.