Against Spending
This talk about Candidate Kennedy being such a big spender—and opposition to him because of his so-called leaning to high taxes reminds of the following little true story:
A young man lived with his parents in a Public Housing Development. Now he had attended public schools, of course, and had participated in the free lunch programs. Later he entered the Army. Upon discharge, he kept his National Service Life Insurance.
He enrolled in the State University, working part-time at the State Capitol to help along his GI education check. Following his graduation he married a public health nurse and bought a home with an FHA loan. He was fortunate enough to secure an RFC loan to go into business.
As time went on a baby blessed the home—born at the City Hospital. The young father bought a little farm with help from the Veterans Land Program and obtained emergency feed from the government. His father and mother lived very comfortably on the farm on their social security and ol-age assistance checks. REA lines supplied electricity, the government helped him clear his land, the county agent was good enough to show him how to terrace it. The government built him a fish pond.
Sometime later he put the farm in the Soil Bank. The payments helped completely to retire the indebtedness.
He reads books from the public library. The child grew up, entered the public school, ate free lunches and rode the school bus, played in the municipal park and swam in the public pool, and joined Future Farmers of America. His father’s money was in the bank—insured by an agency of the government.
The man owned an automobile, so he favored the federal highway program. He signed a petition asking for Uncle Sam’s help in developing an industrial development program to improve the economy of the area. He was a leader in a move to get the new federal building—and in fact went to Washington with a group to ask the government to build a power dam costing millions so the area could be protected from floods and be provided with cheaper electricity.
He was also a leader in a move to get his specific type of business special tax write-offs and exemptions.
Then one day he sat down, took his pen in hand, and wrote his Congressman thusly:
“I wish to protest all this government spending—and the high taxes that go with it. I’m getting tired of it. I believe in rugged individualism. I think people should stand on their own feet. . . without expecting handouts. What we need is a return to Principles of our Constitution . . . and the policies of States’ Rights.”
Every know this man? Like to see what he looks like? Don’t want to see him . . . don’t want to see what he looks like? Then tomorrow morning when you shave, brush your teeth or hair—or otherwise use the bathroom—better keep your eyes closed or you will see him grinning or glowering at you from that medicine-cabinet mirror underwritten by the Federal Housing Administration.
From page 3 of the Jones County Journal, Trenton, N.C., Aug. 25, 1960
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