This page was last updated on December 22, 2010.
Remember that we are the government; Bob Schmetzer; Beaver County Times; December 21, 2010.
I critiqued 11 previous Schmetzer letters and they are usually broken records. A 2004 letter asserted Republicans were “driving Americans into the ground.” That letter claimed the GOP planned “to reflect their commitment to defend our homeland by reintroducing the draft in 2005” despite the fact Democrats were the only guys talking about reinstating the draft. Other letters resurrected the Cheney/Halliburton talking point, lobbied for VP Cheney’s impeachment, lobbied for surrender in Iraq, and blamed President Bush for a mine cave-in. Breaking the trend were letters lobbying for a government-run, taxpayer-funded healthcare system and another expressing panic at offshoring. One letter was nearly word-for-word plagiarism. More recent letters were entitled “Act on drilling before it’s too late,” “Health plan would level playing field,” and “The time to protect our water is now.”
The BC Democrats website used to list Robert Schmetzer as the local town chair for South Heights, but that page no longer exists as of this writing. Mr. Schmetzer is also “vice-president of PA 4th CD Chapter of Progressive Democrats of America.” The PDA-PA4 website is Beaver County Blue. Why doesn’t the Times mention these associations in an editor’s note when it publishes Mr. Schmetzer’s letters?
Below is a detailed critique of the subject letter.
“In his Thursday letter ‘Wise government is an oxymoron,’ writer Robin Cox begged for facts.”
[RWC] No I didn’t. From here on Mr. Schmetzer simply rattles off tired lefty talking points. Finally, given his constant bashing of the Bush administration, I get a kick out of folks like Mr. Schmetzer now trying to convince us government is “wise.” If government wasn’t wise before, why is it now and why will it be in the future? The less power we allow the government, the less we have to worry about whom is running it.
“The United States is a government of, by and for its people, not just for the wealthy. From its inception, the way to get revenue to run our government has been to get it from wealth, not poverty. The Constitution gives no directive as to whether we the people follow capitalism, socialism or communism. America has and should take the best of all economic philosophies and use them for the betterment of all its citizens.”
[RWC] “The United States is a government of, by and for its people, not just for the wealthy.” Who wrote otherwise? What Mr. Schmetzer didn’t say, however, is as a PDA member/officer he believes “the wealthy” should not receive the same treatment as the rest of the people. Quoting the Tax Foundation, “Despite the charges of critics that the tax [rate] cuts enacted in 2001, 2003 and 2004 favored the ‘rich,’ these cuts actually reduced the tax burden of low- and middle-income taxpayers and shifted the tax burden onto wealthier taxpayers.” The TF further stated, “7.8 million low and middle-income families had their entire income tax liabilities erased by the cuts.” Based on 2008 income tax data, the top 1% of filers paid 38% of the total and the top 5% paid 59%. This soaking of “the wealthy” apparently isn’t enough for lefties like Mr. Schmetzer who wanted tax rates for “the wealthy” to increase on January 1, 2011.
Regarding the “Constitution gives no directive …” comment, perhaps Mr. Schmetzer should reread the Constitution and the writings of our Founding Fathers. Of “capitalism, socialism or communism,” only capitalism is constitutional. That’s because real capitalism is about individual liberty but socialism and communism require government power beyond what the Constitution grants. The 10th Amendment states, “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved for the States respectively, or to the people.” In Federalist Paper #45, James Madison (a Founding Father and fourth President) wrote, “The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the federal government, are few and defined. Those which are to remain in the State governments [and the people] are numerous and indefinite.” The Constitution screams limited government. Absent a very creative interpretation ignoring both the actual words and clear intent of the Constitution, the policies/programs required for communism, Marxism, socialism, et cetera are illegal.
“Cox didn’t write that the Bush administration took the ship of state over the cliff, leaving us in the jam we are in.”
[RWC] Why would I write about “the Bush administration” in my letter? That letter responded to a Carl Davidson letter and he didn’t mention “the Bush administration” even indirectly.
Note Mr. Schmetzer’s drive-by accusation of “the Bush administration.” Mr. Schmetzer doesn’t provide any details. As for “leaving us in the jam we are in,” Mr. Schmetzer seems to forget the recession was caused by the subprime lending meltdown, a leftist policy.
“The wars are expensive. Did you see war bonds or a tax increase to pay for them? Where did he think the money came from? Billions of borrowed dollars were and still are being stolen by war profiteers.”
[RWC] What does any of this have to do with Mr. Davidson’s letter or my response? The only “war” Mr. Davidson mentioned is his and Mr. Schmetzer’s “class war” on “the super-rich.”
Mr. Schmetzer appears to believe in the position Bush-era tax rates and the wars are responsible for our deficit and debt. Since 1931, by my count (using Obama administration data) we’ve run a deficit all but 12 years. As far as debt, the U.S. government has been in debt since the Revolutionary War. Before the 2008-2009 recession began to kick in, tax revenue peaked at $2.6 trillion in 2007, an increase of $577 billion (29%) since 2001. Tax revenue didn’t cause the deficits, excessive spending did. All else being equal, reduced rates result in greater economic output subject to taxation and ultimately result in more tax revenue, as we saw from 2001-2007. For example, 40% of a 10” pie is 25% more pie than 50% of an 8” pie.
“The wars are expensive. Did you see war bonds or a tax increase to pay for them?” Keep in mind Democrats were the majority party in Congress from January 2007 to January 2011 and our current President is a Democrat. I know of 12 letters from Mr. Schmetzer since 2004. Since then, this is the first time Mr. Schmetzer wrote about “war bonds or a tax increase to pay for” the wars. If they are such a good idea, why didn’t Mr. Schmetzer and his fellow Democrats in Congress and the White House lobby for “war bonds or a tax increase to pay for” the wars the last four years? Since they are government debt, how would selling “war bonds” have helped our debt problem?
“It’s time to support U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders’ position to protect working families, American business and save the republic. ‘We’ are the government, not oxymorons.”
[RWC] By definition, leftist positions/programs do nothing “to protect working families, American business and save the republic” despite what folks like Mr. Schmetzer claim. That’s because leftist positions increase government power at the expense of the governed.
Regarding “working families,” keep in mind lefties tend to have a different definition than most of us. In an old comment on the Times website, Mr. Schmetzer’s Beaver County Reds fellow leader Carl Davidson described his definition of “working-class” thusly: “If someone else [signs your paycheck], you’re in the working class.” I suspect most business owners - large or small - (who pay SS and Medicare taxes just as the rest of us) would be surprised to learn they aren’t “working families.”
This may be mean, but I hope one day Mr. Schmetzer and his fellow travelers get to live under – and I mean under – a government they seem to want for the rest of us, just not in the United States.
Finally, there’s a minor point. The Times wrote my letter’s title; I didn’t supply one. That’s because even if you supply a title, my experience is the Times prefers to write the title itself. Therefore, Mr. Schmetzer should address his “oxymoron” comment to the Times.