Bond-age

Politics is the big thing right now. We don’t have anything big, so we picked something small – small, but interesting…and political.

Every now and again a politician or special interest group gets an idea that has no real reasonable or rational way to pay for it. Enter the ‘bond measure.’

“So we don’t have the money, huh? That is no problem. We’ve got bonds…”

Companies and governments sell bonds to raise money, and while that sounds noble, there is a catch – it’s not like a little league fundraiser, it’s more like a bank loan. The government has to pay the money back to the bond holder – with interest – and there is a time limit.

This is where you come in. Where do you think the government get the money?

“Uh, I dunno. Don’t they print it?”

Yes, but that’s not enough. They have to take your money. Can you say, “taxes?”… you’re gonna…

What was this, a $40M bond measure, 30 years to pay for this sucker…? Better start bleeding the people.

“Show the government your sweet money.”

Now, while the bond measure might say, “No new taxes are needed and the fiscal impact is minimal”, the truth is we have to pay for it – it’s just deferred.

Where is this bond measure leading? I dunno, you guess…

Yes, the bottom line is that our friend, the bond measure, is nothing more than a vote to ‘get now’ and ‘pay later’. I think these things should have to pass unanimously.

We’re always pointing the finger at irresponsible government spending, but here we are voting to help them do it. It’s like handing your credit card to your teenage daughter and saying, “Get whatever you need, honey, we’ll pay for it later.” Oh, and you WILL pay, and unfortunately, so will I…

Because even though I always vote “no”, everyone else always votes “yes” and so the bond measure passes and we all get to pay for it.

“That’s why I think it should be unanimous to pass one of these things.”

Financial responsibility means we should save up and buy – that’s what my grandparents did. Now there may be a few times when it’s okay for the government to go into debt for something, but they are very rare – like disaster situations, or desperately needed infrastructure [desperately needed does not mean "a computer for every student" or "a park on every corner".]

My rule of thumb is, “if it’s a bond measure, the answer is no”

“Sorry, no.”

If current government funds aren’t being used correctly, why give them more…and pay interest?

“There is a ton of financial bondage on this ballot… No… No way… no…”

Transcribed by: Ian

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