Terry Paulson has an interesting article on the RightNetwork. It is chock full of wisdom of our fathers, quotes to make you think: Reading this article, I was amazed and dismayed by how far we have diverged from the path which our Founding Fathers had planned for us. The opening paragraph is shocking not for any graphic content or vulgar language, but for the complete acceptance of a lesser condition:
I remember a black physician who shared his own frustration at hearing a young mother on welfare point to her caseworker and say to her child, “That is my case worker. Someday, you’ll have one, too.” Is that now the American Dream?
I go to the grocery store and see the people with their state-funded welfare cards, and it’s not just mothers with children or old folks. I see grown women with grown daughters swiping my tax dollars. I don’t begrudge food to those who need it, but I feel sad for the people who have lost a vision of taking care of themselves, and even more sad for the generations who are raised knowing nothing better, of not having the dignity of being in control of their own lives. Those able-bodied slaves of the state do not realize that they are stealing from the rest of us. They simply do not think of it.
He also had a warning: “I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them.”
Unfortunately, America has steadily been drifting from the Constitutional grounding our Founding Fathers established. What started with FDR’s New Deal has now blossomed into a nanny state where our Constitutional rights have been transformed into extensive entitlements.
Not only do they not think of it, it becomes a perceived right:
Columnist Walter Williams has written on the difference between rights and wishes. He asserts: “A right confers no obligation on another. For example, the right to free speech is something we all possess. My right to free speech imposes no obligation upon another except that of non-interference. … Contrast those rights to the supposed right to decent housing or medical care. Those supposed rights do confer obligations upon others. There is no Santa Claus or Tooth Fairy. …Your right to decent housing and medical care requires that some other American have less of something else, namely diminished rights to his earnings.”
And by forcing me to hand over my earned dollars to a nanny state to give to the “needy,” my right and my privilege to contribute to charity is taken away, also. But then, to paraphrase a very popular former president, when asked if a certain tax cut would be given to the people, “we don’t know if you’ll spend it right”. Excuse me, sir, but they are my dollars to do with as I please, and if I want to feed a hungry child or go skydiving, it is my right. I do know that I, personally, would donate more to charities I feel comfortable with, if I had more to donate.
This is not to say that helping our neighbor is not a personal moral imperative most Americans feel. In 1835, Alexis de Tocqueville wrote his acclaimed and often quoted Democracy in America in which he praised America and its democratic ideals. Although noting the dangers of individualism, he praised how America was able to balance liberty and equality. He was impressed with America’s self-governing local communities based on self-reliance and mutual cooperation. Tocqueville attributed America’s entrepreneurial spirit that he witnessed to the practice of limited government, but he warned, “The American Republic will endure until the day Congress discovers that it can bribe the public with the public’s money.”
Read the whole thing. Then weep for what we’ve lost, and regain the determination to get it back.
I thank you folks for all your input on the mortgage issue. I can tell from the consensus here that you’re a financially responsible group of people.
Yep, owning your home outright leaves you with only the county tax assessor’s fingers on your manse. We regard our homestead as comfortable shelter, not an investment, though its value has increased dramatically in 31 years, helped along by location, location, location. Hamous is so right about a cash purchase of a vehicle kinda taking the wind out of the… Read more »
#23 Hamous It’s a great feeling. Amen. Although after you own your home free and clear, you are in some sense renting it from the state by way of your property taxes. I think it was Annise Parker (in some previous city job) who said that old people don’t have to pay their property taxes on a homestead, so what’s… Read more »
#11 Dude We paid off our mortgage 9 years ago with a windfall that I got when I took the early retirement package from a big company in the O&G services field. All it took was to ask the mortgage company what was the payoff amount. Only they could compute it. I can’t remember now if our property tax was… Read more »
Gran Torino in the Burrow anyone?
This made me grin.
And I needed a grin today. Big time.
Hammie is correct about no house payments. I think it foolish anyone that thinks Hammie should buy a new house “just” for the tax deduction. There are better investments than a tax deduction. I like the security of owning my own home, still a few years down the road for me. Hey Hammie wanna trade? 😉
Well, I have a place to live that is not owned by the bank, a sleazy slumlord, or the gubment. And in the not-too-distant future my property taxes will drop precipitously. Comparable houses in my neighborhood are selling for more than three times what I paid for mine in 1990. That makes me feel somewhat comfortable and, barring asteroids, ET… Read more »
Personally, I think a home is a pretty lousy investment and I’ll bet I can find a lot of sad sacks in agreement today. I bought a home because I needed a place to live and nothing more. Couldn’t agree more. Most people don’t like to face up to this reality, but a home (that you live in) is not… Read more »
Well, just got off the phone with the mortgage peeps and I’m in the same boat Hamous was in. Gotta keep paying into escrow, which will then be returned to me after final payoff. Oh well, it was worth a try.
29 Larry, Nobody pointed a gun at the heads of those hapless borrowers. It pays to read the fine print and think things out before engaging in any business deal (a loan is a business deal). Yes, many of the folks in the banking business are unprincipled and overall bad guys. That is not exactly a news flash. Remember who… Read more »
Adee, Ms Simple and I paid off our 30-yr Home Mortgage in about 10 years, but it was a 9% loan, which was pretty good for the inflationary 70’s and early 80’s. Paying off your loan only makes sense if you cannot get a higher rate of return from another investment. A plain jane dull as hell S&P Index Fund… Read more »
Bob, the whole crew in our building “Poke Chopped” today only 2 people DIDN’T get the Poke Chop.
Guess what I’m having for lunch tomorrow? 😀
I voted against my own interests today by advising against further development of a proposed product based on some technology that I (rightly) did not think was ready for prime time just yet. Had the effort continued, I’d have been a key player in writing the techie courses for it and teaching the teachers how to teach them, amounting to… Read more »
Yes, add up the total of your payments over the term of your loan versus the purchase price and you will be staggered. Pay what ever extra you can afford each month toward the principle and eventually it is MUCH money in your pocket. Same thing on a car loan, pay extra each month if you can.
It is sadly amazing how many financial advisors convince homeowners not to pay off mortgages early, dangling that mortgage interest deduction in front of them as a huge reason not to do it. Ahem, then they suggest various investments with the $$ that doesn’t go to the early payoff, and of course they rake in commissions on those sales. Wonder… Read more »
Hosted a fund raiser for a Democrat.
Got elected with only 11 Republican votes.
Appointed Liberal Democrats to Calendars and Ways and Means Committees.
Threatened non-supporters with redistricting.
Supports Fred Hill regarding property tax caps.
Yep.
Its amazing who some folks will call a Proven Conservative Leader so that they won;t have to admit that the nutcases were right.
The banksters and their partners in crime in the government have cleverly marketed debt for decades. All that’s left now is the wake of financial and economic destruction most of the country and every level of government is now drowning in. Heard the term “mark to market” lately. You won’t either until the Fed and the banksters and the federal… Read more »
I have always despised escrow accounts for taxes and insurance. I realize about 80% of folks need that discipline to fund those expenses… I agree with that. The reason I did it in the first place was convenience, but if I had it to do over again I would not set up an escrow acct. P.M.I. is another one that’s… Read more »
#25. Hammer, that’s another great scam perpetrated by the lenders – tax deductiblity of mortgage interest. It’s fine if its available to take advantage of it – but it should in no way be used to rationalize the legitimacy of debt. Let’s see, the guy with the mortgage spends $1 dollar in interest costs for 15 to 40 cents on… Read more »
I have always despised escrow accounts for taxes and insurance. I realize about 80% of folks need that discipline to fund those expenses but it’s just another of many moneymaking scams perpetrated by the banksters, in my opinion. It’s no different than the millions of folks that overpay their income taxes and unwittingly provide an interest free loan to the… Read more »
Several friends try and make me feel bad by saying “Yeah, but you can’t write off all that interest.” Yeah but I DON’T HAVE A HOUSE PAYMENT, YOU FOOL! HA HA HA! On a serious note, here’s a tip that may or may not be helpful depending on how many other deductions you have. After I paid off my mortgage… Read more »
I just read on Facebook that my daughter is now “single.” Dang it! Her bf was doing such a good job on the yard raking.
I paid off my loan a couple years early and the satisfaction alone was enough, regardless of the small amount I saved in interest. It’s a great feeling.
Well, that’s true. I’d still like to “stick it to The Man” in whatever small way is available to me though.
🙂
At this point, your principal is so low and the remaining time so short, early payoff likely won’t save you more than a few bucks.
Unless you can get the mortgage holder to release you, yes you have to continue to fund it. I tried to get mine to release me (then Nations Bank) and they wouldn’t. Once paid off I did get the escrow returned in about two weeks though. OK, that’s what I was getting at. Not the answer I wanted but I… Read more »
Dud, I assume you have enough existing equity(used to be 20% minimum requirement) in your home to forego the entire escrow process. Yes to the 20% equity part, however, the mortgage was originally set up with the escrow structure (in Nov. 1999), so modifying the mortgage can be done now? Definitely will be contacting the lender, just want to know… Read more »
do I have a legal obligation to continue funding escrow in an existing mortgage up to the bitter end Unless you can get the mortgage holder to release you, yes you have to continue to fund it. I tried to get mine to release me (then Nations Bank) and they wouldn’t. Once paid off I did get the escrow returned… Read more »
Dud, I assume you have enough existing equity(used to be 20% minimum requirement) in your home to forego the entire escrow process. Contact your lender now and request to begin paying your property taxes and insurance directly in 2011.
when your mortgage goes away, so does the escrow account. You should get a refund of any unspent money in your escrow account when you pay off the loan (may take a couple of months…). Understood completely. I guess my question is more along the lines of: “do I have a legal obligation to continue funding escrow in an existing… Read more »
#11 dude Short answer: when your mortgage goes away, so does the escrow account. You should get a refund of any unspent money in your escrow account when you pay off the loan (may take a couple of months…). You’re gonna have to start putting money aside on your own to pay your property taxes. You also will need to… Read more »
19 unusual gifts of dubious value.
It’s Wednesday.
Stupid question.
I suppose if you’re gonna break your neck falling out of a ceiling, this idiot picked one of the better places.
Got a question for you financially astute types (or anyone who knows the answer for that matter): I’m going to pay my mortgage off in 2011, probably about mid year. Currently part of my payments go into escrow to handle taxes, homeowner’s insurance, etc. Considering that those bills will be due after my projected payoff date in 2011 though, do… Read more »
I’ve never liked Hitchens.
Christopher Hitchens may in fact be a great literary talent; that does not change my opinion of him in this article that he is full of sh!t. They need and want to sublimate the anxiety into hysteria and paranoia. The president is a Kenyan. The president is a secret Muslim. The president (why not?—after all, every little bit helps) is… Read more »
Back again minus the splint/wrap and two sets of stitches. Green Vetwrap is a thing of the past–on me anyhow. A soft elastic sleeve replaces everything, to be worn day and night for two weeks, except while bathing, and at night only for two more.. A spare was included. Easy at-home therapy instructions provided. Can’t miss seeing the wrist incision,… Read more »
Millions of Americans are currently worried about two things that are, in their minds, emotionally related. The first of these is the prospect that white people will no longer be the majority in this country, and the second is that the United States will be just one among many world powers. That is among the most intellectually lazy assessment of… Read more »
Christopher Hitchens’ health may be failing and his hair falling, but his brain continues to work just fine as he picks on poor little Genn Beck in this Vanity Fair piece. Glenn Beck has not even been encouraging his audiences to reread Robert Welch. No, he has been inciting them to read the work of W. Cleon Skousen, a man… Read more »
Think about it this way. The recipients like the idea of something for nothing and are more than happy to give up “freedoms” that they’ve never experienced anyway. Our politicians figured out very early on how to use the treasury to buy votes. Our friends think that if it works for us, why not try it at home – maybe… Read more »
Good analogy, Bonecrusher. We’re suffering figurative azimuth error.
What has happened in our country has happened in most long lived organizations; the longer they are in existence the greater the likelihood that they will stray from their mission. In the beginning, just a little variance does not much matter, for example when shooting a rifle at a target 50 yards away if the muzzle moves a little “off… Read more »
Good morning all. Warm 54 at 6, ground fog spreading a bit of needed moisture.
Am off to the orthopedist this morning, have great hopes of ditching the splint and wrap and starting on therapy. Spouse replaced the top wrap with green Vetrap on Saturday so I am seasonally festive. Be interesting to see the doc’s reaction.
Later
Mornin’ Gang
We’re early today. 😉
I thank you folks for all your input on the mortgage issue. I can tell from the consensus here that you’re a financially responsible group of people.
Yep, owning your home outright leaves you with only the county tax assessor’s fingers on your manse. We regard our homestead as comfortable shelter, not an investment, though its value has increased dramatically in 31 years, helped along by location, location, location. Hamous is so right about a cash purchase of a vehicle kinda taking the wind out of the… Read more »
#23 Hamous It’s a great feeling. Amen. Although after you own your home free and clear, you are in some sense renting it from the state by way of your property taxes. I think it was Annise Parker (in some previous city job) who said that old people don’t have to pay their property taxes on a homestead, so what’s… Read more »
#11 Dude We paid off our mortgage 9 years ago with a windfall that I got when I took the early retirement package from a big company in the O&G services field. All it took was to ask the mortgage company what was the payoff amount. Only they could compute it. I can’t remember now if our property tax was… Read more »