Two new years
– one for the rich and one for the poor

Jan 2, 2006

While the House and the Senate are still dickering over the final form of the federal budget (projected over the next five years), they have agreed on some things – how to cut more out of social programs.

At the very moment when more and more people are losing medical care at their jobs, Congress proposed to cut Medicaid. At the moment that more retirees than ever are losing medical care on their pensions, Congress cut Medicare. At the very moment there are fewer and fewer decent paying jobs for young people, while everyone says to the young they must go to college, Congress is cutting student loans.

What justification exists for government if it doesn’t meet the needs that the economy cannot provide for the population? In this day and age, health care and education are among those needs. Support for the population’s unmet needs is implied when we pay our taxes.

Instead this government provides less and less to the population in order to give more to the tiny wealthy minority. Specifically, Congress enacted these cuts in medical aid and education in order to pave the way for an extension of tax breaks favoring only the wealthy.

That tells us what this government intends for the new year.