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Larry Bodine, PC, Precinct 238
In the last issue, we detailed five reasons you can offer voters skeptical that government is a good thing. As English philosopher Thomas Hobbes wrote in 1651: Life without government is “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.”
Don’t let Republicans control the narrative that government is “bad” or “the problem.” The argument is bogus. Here are five non-controversial reasons why government is a good thing:
Fighting addiction. A strong Drug Enforcement Administration fights illicit trafficking of heroin, fentanyl and Oxycontin, which addict 2.5 million Americans. Good government could suspend suspect shipments of Oxycontin by opioid distributors AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health, and McKesson and manufacturers Purdue, Endo, and Janssen.
National parks. Our national parks include more than 400 areas that 300 million people visit annually. “Wilderness itself is the basis of all our civilization,” said President Theodore Roosevelt, who established 150 national forests, 51 bird reserves and five national parks. Good government protects national parks from cattle grazing, coal mining, oil drilling, commercialization, and looting of ancient artifacts.
Clean energy. Good government promotes non-polluting energy sources like wind, solar, geothermal, bio-energy and hydropower. The federal solar tax credit (investment tax credit), lets you deduct 30 percent of the cost of installing a solar-energy system from your federal taxes.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration is working to increase dirty energy from oil, coal and hydraulic fracturing (fracking).
Social Security. The Social Security Act was enacted in 1935, during the Great Depression, when millions of Americans saw their life savings wiped out. This safety net is in place for 59 million Americans over age 66. Social Security is not going broke; it is projected to deliver full guaranteed benefits until at least 2037.
Well into the 1950s, Republicans tried to repeal Social Security, and today they are trying to “privatize” it. This is a plan to dismantle Social Security, cut benefits and increase retirement risks.
Healthy seniors. In 1965, under President Lyndon Johnson, Congress enacted Medicare to provide health insurance to people age 65 and older, regardless of income or medical history.
I love Medicare. It’s great! I get comprehensive health insurance at a great price. My doctor bills and prescriptions are all covered regardless of pre-existing conditions. It gives me a free gym membership.
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