Sequester this Pal!

 

 

 

"OMG! I am going to be shot with my own gun!"

 

By Jove, they have really done it! It looks like in two weeks, the unthinkable scenario will really play out. The most goofy idea, hatched in the White House, passed into law by Congress, is upon us. It is a textbook example of how not to govern. We are paying many people huge salaries with amazing perks to come up with something right out of the third grade. Now that it appears immanent, the chattering class has started the blame game and Chicken Little is looking for that first speck of sky to hit someone on the head.

What am I talking about? The dreaded sequestration, of course. It was going to be painful if it took place on Jan 1, 2013. Because poor governing became even worse that day, the "event" was put off until March 1, 2013 (just in case "something" could be worked out). Because of this 60 day delay, the $85B scheduled to impact this year will be truncated making it even more painful. Really? Do we have slop in the budget that could be cut? ABSOLUTELY! Do these cuts make any sense? Probably not. Will we survive it? ABSOLUTLEY!

The doomsday crowd is already talking about kids being thrown out of school, ships not being able to go to sea, meat inspections on hold and borders becoming less safe. None of this will happen. When I retired, I knew my income would be a fraction of what it was when I was working. I did not tell my wife we would only be able to have two meals a day. We did not have to turn our heat down to 55 degrees. We did not have to sell any assets. We needed to adjust our spending. That's all. Our lifestyle now meets our new, reduced income. We can still do some traveling, go out for dinner once in a while, or see a movie. We just can't be as free with our money as we were when we were working.

Our government can do the same. We spend a whole bunch on a whole bunch of things. Some of which are redundant, others superfluous, many are just plain outdated. Once in a while, one of our Presidents is able to see through the Washington fog and cut to the chase. Here is a quote from the Gipper himself on this issue:

"No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth!"

So on March 1st, the long discussed sequestration will happen. On March 2nd, the sun will rise, people will go to work, and supper will be served that night. At long last, the growth of government will slow down - not cut, just slowed down. Hopefully, this is just the start of meaningful cuts to follow. The dreaded "entitlements" might even be discussed. I will say again, I will agree that progress is being made when the debt clock slows down. I will agree the problem is fixed when I see the debt clock go in reverse. Until then, we will limp along with half baked solutions like sequestration - and maybe once again, we will shot with our own gun.