It's very rare if even possible to get something for nothing. The concept of "free" is an arbitrary one. An action must be taken in order for the "free" to be received.
If you win the lottery ("free money!"), you had to buy a ticket.
If you were given a free car wash from the repair shop, you had to take your vehicle in.
If your coffee was bought by the person in front of you, you had to first join the line.
It seems that the idea of free or getting something for nothing has become more prevalent over the years. Why? Where did this come from? How did it become part of the fabric? I see it in many aspects of life.
My students feel they should just "get" a grade...which technically they do. But if they have not taken any action, the grade is an F.
My children feel they should just get food and water and shelter...which technically - yes - that's my responsibility as a parent. But we do require they complete chores and help maintain the household to make the getting of those things easier.
Where the idea of getting something for nothing has really begun to burn my shorts is in the realm of society - politics, economics, education. Election season has only made this idea more pervasive.
In Montana, we are debating the issues of legalizing marijuana, implementing a sales tax, among the usual battles over various state seats. Both sides have augered themselves into their own ideology with very little budging seeming to happen. We are also dealing with the same issues as most of the rest of the nation - reforming police forces, funding public education, reducing incarceration rates, updating crumbling infrastructure, and many more.
The left says "make marijuana legal!" The right says "It will kill our kids."
Our Republican nominee for governor says "Sales tax is great" and our Democratic nominee says "Sales tax is the devil's work." (Not verbatim quotes - just the general gist based on the 110 colored pamphlets I've received).
These cries fall among other ones we've heard around the world - defund the police, increase mental health care funding, expand medical services, make schools great, rebuild our cities, build roads and bridges, make all areas of America accessible to all...and on and on and on.
So how do we do it? How do we get all that...for nothing?
That's right, we can't.
Most Americans want similar things. The 'how' is the sticking point. But what can't be ignored is that most of these "things" cost money. Again - can't get something for nothing.
An action must be taken.
So let's legalize marijuana and tax the shit out of it with all taxes going to mental health services, hiring social workers, increasing training of law enforcement, and updating our justice systems.
Let's implement a sales tax with exemptions for residents then put all that money towards public schools and updating the infrastructure in the state and investing in parenting programs so we can all become better parents.
Let's tax gambling machines and put that money towards medical funds and systems to help our residents receive incredible services.
We can't have top schools, top mental health services, top hospitals, top infrastructure, top law enforcement if we don't do something. You can't get something for nothing.
No solution is perfect because every solution involves humanity. So let's get over finding a perfect solution and work on finding solutions period. Our state has a population that just skims 1 million. We do not have the ability to fund our programs through property tax alone. We are causing harm by ignoring the fact that our pie is only so big and more pieces keep getting cut from it.
So politicians and policymakers reading this - go do something so we can get something.
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