We lose our rights when we give up personal responsibility

by James Simpson
Potomac News
Friday, April 16, 2004

Over the past few weeks there have been a number of letters and columns attacking fiscally conservative representatives for abdicating or shirking their responsibilities concerning the county and state budget debates.I believe that the shirking has not been done by those elected officials who hold the line on taxes, but by those representatives who prefer to transfer certain responsibilities to all citizens rather than placing financial responsibility upon the shoulders of those to whom it truly belongs.

Heck, "shirking responsibility" is now an American tradition. A prime example was offered in my recent column about the taxpayer subsidization of sports games, instead of the true cost being paid for by those who wish to watch pro and semi-pro sports.

Every time the responsibility of one individual is placed on the shoulders of others by government - rights are trampled on. This mind-set is the core philosophy of those who support collectivism.

Our society has abdicated responsibility for years and this is remarkably clear when reviewing government budgets at every level. Over time, collectivists, who in the past found very little support for their goals, are unfortunately now in the majority of both the Democratic and Republican parties.

Early Americans didn't think the way contemporary Americans do today. American colonists were independent and self-sufficient. They believed in and practiced a strong sense of integrity, honor and principles. Exactly opposite from the way our collectivist representatives think today. The laws our representatives pass have allowed people to abdicate responsibility for decades.

When the government provides golf courses, baseball parks or museums, it removes the responsibility (and the freedom) of individuals to determine what forms of entertainment should exist and thrive, and similarly what should fail and collapse.

When the government pays for airline security, instead of making the airlines responsible for security by adding that cost to the ticket price, it removes the responsibility of airline patrons to pay for their decision to use the planes for their transportation requirements.

When the government forces taxpayers to pay into a retirement system, erroneously named Social Security, it removes the responsibility of individuals to plan for their retirement.

When the government provides public transportation, it removes the responsibility of individuals to find a way to get to and from work on their own.

Not only is it appalling to make everyone pay for these services, there are side-effects that are destructive to a free society; including the impediment of free-market alternatives and the elimination of benefits that come with competition.

However, the abdication of responsibility in America goes much further than this.

If our society were based upon personal responsibility, laws would not be written in a way that fail to recognize any difference in an individual who is cautious and one who is careless or reckless.

As laws are written now, the responsibility for bad decisions and actions of some members of society are distributed among all taxpayers.

An individual who causes an accident by running a red light should be held financially responsible for the cost of the incident; including police, fire and rescue response. (In addition to other penalties)

An individual who has a fire caused by a clogged dryer vent, or unattended grease on the stove, should be held financially responsible for the cost of the incident; including police, fire and rescue response.

An individual who causes an accident when driving drunk, even if there is only property damage involved, should be held financially responsible for the cost of the incident; including police, fire and rescue response.

Our society lets people shirk their responsibility by not holding them financially accountable for their actions.

The cost of detention centers wouldn't be such a burden to the taxpayer, if those who were incarcerated for breaking the law (arrested for bar fights, spousal abuse, drunk driving, etc.) were provided a bill for all of the expenses incurred to process them through the system, including: the response of police, fire and rescue, their detention and the cost of a hearing and/ or trial. If found guilty of the crime for which they are charged, an individual should have to pay complete restitution for their infraction. And I mean the ENTIRE expense, not some lousy $1 per day when the cost of incarceration alone is over $80 per day.

The responsible individual should be required to pay for the entire cost of the aforementioned incidents. By eliminating the distribution of these costs to all taxpayers, and holding people responsible for their actions, we would add another effective deterrent to bad decisions and behavior.

I can't help but be saddened that citizens and officials have decided to ignore important lessons from over 1,600 years ago. The Roman Empire was crumbling while the masses attended sporting events at the public coliseum. Then, as now, government officials and representatives were more than willing to provide the "bread and circuses" necessary to distract citizens from the failure of their actions.

James Simpson lives in Lake Ridge.