why bloated government sucks and why you should care

the federal government is out of control. true to its people, it spends way more than it brings in. early projections for this year are $250 billion (or put more scarily, $250,000,000,000.00). if you're like me, you're wondering how long this can continue. more and more americans are learning what happens to you when you can't pay your bills anymore. you lose your house. just wait and see what happens when the so-called credit crunch hits the federal government and the federal government can't get loans to pay its bills (here's a hint). then we're in real trouble.

it's not much better on the local scale. maryland's projected 2008 budget deficit is $1.7 billion. when you have a budget deficit there are two things you can do 1) spend less or 2) make more. if you live in maryland you probably already know the answer is not "spend less", and to prove it, you already got shafted once this year. sales tax went from 5% to 6%. that means you just got 1% poorer. now your elected officials are at it again. maryland senate bill 232 is on the table and it calls for

Increasing the State tax rates for alcoholic beverages in Maryland from $1.50 to $4.50 per gallon for distilled spirits, from 40 cents to $1.20 per gallon for wine, and from 9 cents to 54 cents per gallon for beer; expressing the State tax rates for alcoholic beverages alternatively as 89.1843 cents for each 0.75-liter container of distilled spirits, 23.7825 cents for each 0.75-liter container of wine, and 5.0625 cents for each 12-ounce container of beer; etc.

this is a 600% increase of the tax on beer and a 300% on wine and spirits, not including the increase in md sales tax. people, if ever there was a time to act, the time is now. write your elected officials.