Right--who are those who elected people to take your money? And how do you suppose we remedy that?
Spouting tired mantras about "smaller gov't" are worthless if you have no way of PROVING that you are right. And, in this system, the only way to PROVE you are right is by playing according to the rules set before you--you must ADAPT. Since *they* are in charge, and have been for 60 years, we must play by their rules, which includes Federal power. Once we have firmly established the programs the way we want them, however, they will meet their demise. For 60 years, *they* have been building programs that are self-sustaining, and thus they cement the idea that the programs are a necessity. If we, however, seize this opportunity, we can rebuild the programs to actually work, and to put themselves out of business. Since the programs are already in place, we must play by their rules with regards to money; but, we can make our own rules as to what is DONE with that money. The programs will disappear once they are run OUR way, as people will no longer "need" them--the participants will be self-sustaining, not the programs.
This is the realm in which we are operating, so we must adapt accordingly. Proselytizing about the joys of a small gov't are empty to the guy who makes $5.15 and can't pay his rent--the programs he is relying on now are tooled in a way that he will have to keep relying on them. If we re-tool them, so the program is still "there for him," but with modified requirements, he will not "need" the program for long, and will experience the independence we know all are capable of. BUT NONE OF IT HAPPENS WITHOUT THE PROGRAM.
I can't say it enough--use the game against them. We should stop being a participant in the game and WIN the game. They have been in control too long--its time to use the game against them!
Except that 'WE' have been in total charge for 6 years and there has been NO movement to make government smaller or change those programs or even to make new programs aimed at making people self-sufficient. All of the spending the government has been doing is just more of the SOS.
Unless Rule #1 is "Less money will be spent on this stuff this year than last year, and so on next year, and so on..." they you ain't a fiscal conservative. Period.