I have no idea why this just occurred to me (actually, it was this short post by dandrews and previous exchanges with barthel). What do we pay our taxes for? I mean, where do we think our money goes? When I was little, at some point taxes came up in a discussion with my parents (probably because I wanted to buy a toy for a dollar and didn’t know why it cost more than a dollar). Of course, their explanation had to do with paying for cops, teachers, roads, and bridges. Somehow, that has still stuck with me. I read the analysis of the budget. I know where the money goes. Yet somehow, in the back of my mind, I still assume that enough taxes go towards cops, teachers, roads, and bridges that I shouldn’t have to worry about it.

So why the hell is our stimulus plan supposed to cover roads and bridges (and school improvements)? Are our politicians ripping us off? Is this some sort of scam? Why is it that every time my taxes need to go up, it’s because we’ll have to cut school budgets if they don’t? Why do we need an unfunded $800 billion stimulus bill? Shouldn’t this have already been payed for? What the hell are the priorities in Washington?

Thinking about why you pay taxes and where the money actually goes will drive you crazy.