It seems buried in their DNA, that for progressives, the hardest lesson to learn is that there is no free lunch. Someone, somewhere, has to pick up the tab.
A recent community forum meeting held at the First Unitarian Church in North Austin, Texas drew an overflow crowd of more than 300 homeowners, steaming over another increase in property taxes.
Two nights later, the Statesman reported, a furious assembly at Grace United Methodist Church in Travis Heights complained about home ownership becoming unaffordable due to rising tax bills.
Yet the residents of this popular city, who enjoy sustained growth in tourism, industry and property values, don’t quite get it: If you keep voting for more parks, more services, more infrastructure and more improvements, you have to foot the bill for them.
Gretchen Gardner typified the average sentiment, dripping with irony. “I’m at the breaking point,” she said. With a property bill that has climbed to $8,500, the artist added, “I have voted for…anything that will make this city better. But now I can’t afford to live here anymore.”
Similarly, landholders in Travis County, of which Austin is a part, are up in arms over rising tax bills, and the Commissioners are under immense pressure to reduce appraisals and tamp down projects.
For whereas the federal government can print money to cover its overdraft and pass the buck on to the next generation, Texans cannot. So if living within your means seems a prudent philosophy, learn to check the “No” box on ballot day.
H/T Poor Richards News
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