Seed Corn

    When I was in about the 4th grade, (Early last century,  as my Grandson would quip) I remember, during a geography lesson about farmers growing corn and wheat in the mid-west, the teacher posed a question to the class. 
    “The farmers use some of the corn to feed their livestock, some they sell, and some they carefully store away.  Why do you suppose they store some?”
    Guesses were few, such as that they couldn’t sell it or that the animals might eat more or have babies and they’d need it later.  At last she explained ,  “Because corn is a seed, and they have to save enough to plant a new crop the next year”. 

    Now why would I remember that long ago lesson?  Because our government seems to need to be reminded of the need for ‘seed corn’. 
    The Democrats in particular seem to think that taking away “excess” profits is a fine way to get more money for the government to spend.  But just as with the farmer’s corn stores that are needed to grow  next year’s crop, those dollars wantonly taxed away cause future profits to diminish or even disappear. Burdensome regulations have the same effect of draining dollars away. And  the Republicans need to be reminded too, since they seem always to “cave” to the Democrats’  notions.

    When a company is earning healthy profits, it begins looking to expand and grow, which makes it necessary to hire new workers. These workers earn a salary that they pay income taxes on. Advertising needs dollars too, and limiting that can lead to less market for the product or service. Less market leads to laying off workers and even of the business closing its doors.  That results in loss of revenue, not gain.

Thus it is well known that ‘cutting taxes increases revenue‘.

    That seems like an oxymoron if you don’t realize they mean cutting tax rates. I learned that from the late Milton Friedman, a brilliant economist.
    Cutting tax rates stirs people to change the way they handle their profits. Instead of sending their profit overseas, or putting it into low-yield tax shelters, they now can afford to put it into productive investments that build the economy, earn more money for themselves and their employees, and thus both pay more in tax revenues. It has the added benefit of  increasing employment and yielding more money for everyone including the government. How sweet it is!
    Doesn’t that raise a few questions about motive?  I can’t believe the Democrats don’t know this.  I am led reluctantly to think they are more interested in punishing achievers or in holding the power of the purse over the people than in giving everyone more of the good life… or, could it be, both?

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