Tag Archives: taxes

The baby and the bath water

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Government spending can be excessive. It’s hard to put taxpayer money where it is most efficiently used, without waste. Bureaucracies tent to grow faster than necessary, and inefficiencies follow.

But when making cuts it’s important not to throw the baby out with the bath water.

Have a listen to this John Green TikTok. And contemplate the possible cuts that can come with a recent Elon Musk tweet.

Yes, there are inefficiencies and waste that can be cut, and probably should be cut. But a simple question needs to be asked: What are the costs and dangers of cutting costs and saving money?

I don’t think this question is being thoughtfully asked, and the consequences are concerning… and not easily reversed.

Mind the gap

Is it just me that sees headlines like this and just shake my head?

Air Canada gives execs $10M in bonuses

The article states, “Air Canada granted its executives and managers $10 million in “COVID-19 Pandemic Mitigation Bonuses” and other special stock awards to compensate them for last year’s salary cuts, per its annual note to shareholders. The extra compensation came while the airline was negotiating a $5.9-billion rescue plan with the federal government… Air Canada explained the bonuses, pointing to its “management’s exceptional performance” during the pandemic.”

All this after laying off half of its workforce.

Wow.

I have a friend who thinks Jeff Bazos deserves every penny for getting Amazon where it is. Meanwhile, I think he could personally pay every employee that makes less than 100,000 a year a $10 per hour raise and still be one of the richest men in the world a couple decades from now.

I’m sure Amazon executives earn their fat bonuses too.

These inequalities are getting worse, and our governments subsidizes these big companies, and gives them tax breaks, so that they can provide jobs.

This isn’t sustainable. It’s not just about executive bonuses, it’s about gross inequity. The gap is widening.