Periodically I find myself absolutely incensed that a portion of the money I labor for is summarily taken by the government and redistributed by some faceless bureaucrat to people they believe are entitled to a share of my earnings. Furthermore, I take offense that while it’s my “patriotic duty” to tithe to the government for the benefit of others, there will be people who get back from the government MORE than they pay in taxes thanks to write-offs and programs that make this possible. I specifically say “people” instead of “Americans” because thanks to the spineless Republicans, Obama’s executive action on immigration will grant legal status to undocumented immigrants. What I love is the way the Left says “they will come out of the shadows and pay taxes.” Sure. And they will avail themselves of the many entitlements politicians use to solidify their voter base and those who actually pay taxes stand to reap far more in refunds than they paid into the system. If I’m an illegal, that sure sounds like a “win” to me.

According to the Heritage Foundation in 2013, 60% of all spending went to entitlements. That includes 22% each for social security and Medicare, Medicaid, and other health programs, and 16% to welfare and other entitlement programs. You hear the Left screaming about what is spent on defense, and represents only 18% of the money spent by the government-a duty they are charged with and somehow this administration seems convinced that their “make nice” foreign policy will end all conflicts and that amount can be lowered. We are literally shaking hands and then turning our backs on people who are laughing at our gullibility and scheming to get us. How stupid are we? And how stupid is it to squander our money-and remember, the government has no money that it doesn’t first take from us-on entitlements, legitimizing illegals so they can be attached to the teat, and continuing to pretend that the evil around us is in the corporations and businesses that serve us. I despise crony capitalism but I can’t blame companies for exploiting the same system that allows people to enter this country and gives them not just a pass, but my money, and rewards citizens-with my money-for doing nothing. We are, quite literally, being screwed from both sides. I am sick and tired of working multiple jobs-as does my wife-and the only entity reaping the benefits of our hard work is the government. And what do they do with the extra income they steal from us? Enable someone else to sit at home and do nothing.

The answer, of course, is stopping corporate and personal welfare, phasing out entitlements and allowing wage earners to keep the money we work so hard for. I’ve said this before and I will say it again-no one is a better arbiter of deciding where money should go than the person who earns it and if you aren’t willing to do so, than come to me and ask for my help. I should get to decide whether you need it or not and I am all for helping people in need. No government, no country, can survive when they take from one to give to another…government charity is just wrong. As you prepare your tax returns this year take a long, hard look at the amount that was taken from you and decide whether you think you might have been able to spend it better than the government did.