It’s been a busy few weeks for your favorite Democrat (that’s me, I hope). I had an art show open (my art project for last year - Forest Park 365 – a year in America’s most diverse urban park) on the 30th at Norton’s Fine Art & Framing (2025 S. Big Bend Blvd, 63117). I had over 365 photographs to select, crop, label, print and mount, all while doing radio and television interviews and speaking to local Democratic organizations. As you can imagine, this took some time. The work for the show is completed (the photos are on display at Norton’s through the end of May), but there is plenty of other work to do!

Yesterday, after taking my daughter to school and a quick, 10 mile bicycle ride in Forest Park, I assembled a wedding album for a client (I had already ordered the parts and prints), I designed an album and sent a proof to the client for approval, updated some of my web sites, paid some bills and wondered why my creditors can’t seem to pay as promptly as I do.

I’ve also been reading. This week’s book is about the Fair Tax proposal. I’ll give you a brief overview and then you should read about it yourself. I’m sold on the idea.

Fair tax eliminates all withholding taxes (we get to keep every cent we earn) and eliminates all of the pain of keeping track of expenses and dealing with the IRS, in exchange for a Federal retail sales tax that is collected by the states and remitted to the US Treasury. It’s necessary to read all the way through to see how it works, but, having done that, I can say that it really is a big improvement over our existing system. Although as a businessman I would have to collect and remit the tax, it would still dramatically reduce my paperwork and simplify my life (for starters, it would eliminate the week of unpaid work that it takes me to keep, sort, file and calculate my yearly income taxes).

Check it out and let me know what you think.

 
Be Nice! 03/01/2010
 
Tuesday, I headed to Jefferson City, accompanied by my campaign committee and the media (well, my son with a video camera), all four of us fitting comfortably inside my son’s 1986 Cadillac. It was a gorgeous day, sunny with clouds, and there was political discussion (imagine that!) all the way there and back. We crossed the wide Missouri into the capital (and missed our exit) shortly after 11am, and just a few minutes later we were walking into the lobby of the James C. Kirkpatrick State Information Center (try to avoid getting a building named after yourself – it usually means you’re dead).
The Missouri Secretary of State’s office seems to be very well run. I’ve previously dealt with them only through their web site (Fictitious Names, LLC filing, etc.), but on the first day of filing for office (which is when most people show up) they had friendly, helpful people everywhere, with all of the steps in the filing process neatly spread throughout the building. 

We were first greeted in the lobby, by a man who directed us to the Department of Revenue’s desk, where I was to turn in my affidavit declaring that I was not aware of any tax delinquency on my part.
“You’ve filled it all out!” exclaimed one of the women from the DOR, as the other looked over her shoulder.
“Wasn’t I supposed to?” I asked, a bit puzzled (I had not only filled it out, I had it notarized, as the instructions indicated).
“Yes!” she responded with a big smile (apparently, though, many applicants hadn’t).
The next table I visited was occupied by the representative of the Missouri Democratic Party, who cheerfully accepted my check for $100 and wrote me a receipt. Then we walked up to the third floor, where the Secretary of State’s office is, to begin the actual registration.
I struck up conversations with some of the people I met in the line there, and when Secretary of State Robin Carnahan came by, had a photo taken with her.
“What office are you running for?” she asked.
“Nothing personal,” I said, “I’m running for the seat your brother is in.”
“Be nice.” She replied.

The rest of the time was spent at various desks, checking my ID and the forms I’d taken care of in the lobby downstairs, picking a random number to determine my position on the ballot, verifying my status as a registered voter and recording a message identifying myself for the visually impaired. Then it was to the main desk to get copies of everything and the process was complete.

The ballot application process is complete, but the actual work of the campaign is just begun. So, what are you doing this spring and summer? Do you want to help change our country for the better? We all should be concerned about the financial mess our nation is in and doing all we can to move it to fiscal solid ground. We need people to help with canvassing, we need help setting up neighborhood meetings and we need financial contributions. We need to act now if we really want to secure our future. Call or email me if you’re ready to get involved.

 
 
I've never entered a marathon. And, I don't plan on ever doing so. It's not because I couldn't start as well as anyone else, it's because I wouldn't be able to keep going for very long, much less finish. Some of you know that last year I set out on a 365 day photo project - documenting St. Louis' unique Forest Park (aptly described by Post-Dispatch columnist David Nicklaus as "our town square") every single day of 2009 (you can see it here). It wasn't an easy task; there were many tense "what do I do now" moments, when inspiration seemed in short supply and the job especially daunting. But I did it (with some help from my children when I got a 6-day out-of-town job). I finished the job I set out to do partly because I chose a job that, while demanding, and for me, unprecedented, was within my reach.

Sustainable is one of the buzzwords of our age. We talk of sustainable agriculture (hey, farmer, farmer, put away that DDT, now...), we use the word in regard to development, growth rate, living, the economy, etc. Even the folks at Walmart have something to say about it, though I wouldn't have otherwise put them in the same sentence. Sustainability is everywhere talked about, but no one seems less clear on the concept than the Congress of the United States. When I was in high school, I wrote a essay advocating procrastination, which ended by stating that my life philosophy was "Never put off until tomorrow what you can put off until next week" (I'm afraid I didn't take things as seriously then as I should have). This silly slogan of my youth, however, seems to sum up the approach our national leaders have to paying for things.

While it is true that debt has been a part of the Federal Government since the American Revolution (wars have always been expensive), entitlement spending has not. The collision between mandated spending (Medicare, Social Security, Medicaid) and available resources is closer than most people think (Social Security insolvency is currently projected to be a mere 5 years away). The Government Accountability Office's publication "A Citizen's Guide to the 2008 Financial Report of the U.S. Government" states that we are on "an unsustainable fiscal path".

"With respect to entitlement spending," the report goes on, "the nation must change course before the deficit and debt reach unprecedented heights. The Government must act to bring social insurance expenses and resources in balance."

Considering the current efforts in Congress to expand Medicaid and institute an overhaul of our health care "system", a balance seems not very likely. If Congress does pass any sort of healthcare legislation without providing a new and adequate revenue stream, it will simply be fuel for the fire.

Throughout the history of our nation, we have borrowed to expand infrastructure. This kind of borrowing increases national productivity and commerce, raising tax revenues. On a personal level it's like borrowing to improve your house or expand your business. It's a capital expense. What we are doing now is borrowing to fund increased social services (and an unnecessary foreign war and subsidies for the wealthy). This is like buying groceries on credit. It is not something we can do for long.

So, what happens next? There are a number of possibilities: 
 - bankruptcy, with an ensuing collapse of social services and possibility much more
 - reduction in services (with backlash from the voters, riots and social unrest)
 - increase in taxes (with backlash from the voters, riots and unrest)
 - Congress takes the wrong action and makes things worse
 - all of the above in some combination (we become like France)

We can't afford to do nothing. The right time to take action in preparing for the future is always now, and now is never a moment too soon. There is a lot that needs to be fixed, and not much time to fix it.

Get involved with my run for the Democratic nomination in Missouri's 3rd congressional district. 
My telephone number is 314-504-6692.