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My gosh, SOMEONE has to pay for all these government programs!
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What is easily overlooked is that someone has to pay for everything, whether it is provided by the government or the private sector. Do you think if schools or bridges or police were provided by private corporations, nobody would have to pay for them anymore, and the citizens would have all that extra money for entertainment and vacations and delivered pizza?
What is easily overlooked is that someone has to pay for everything, whether it is provided by the government or the private sector. Do you think if schools or bridges or police were provided by private corporations, nobody would have to pay for them anymore, and the citizens would have all that extra money for entertainment and vacations and delivered pizza?
Um, no, I don't think that.
My parents live in Hot Springs Village - a gated community north of Hot Springs. The HOA fees pay for a private police force, a private firefighter force, and a private EMT force, as well as road maintenance. There are three EMT stations, and about five fire stations within the community, which has about 16,000 residents and thousands of acres.
The roads are as smooth as satin, and the emergency personnel response time averages under 6 minutes.
The HOA fees are $35 a month per 1/2 acre lot.
Oh, and they also have their own water source and purification plant, and their own electricity. Those fees come to about $65 a month.
All privately funded.
Their property taxes for a 1700 square foot home are about $700 a year.
My parents live in Hot Springs Village - a gated community north of Hot Springs. The HOA fees pay for a private police force, a private firefighter force, and a private EMT force, as well as road maintenance. There are three EMT stations, and about five fire stations within the community, which has about 16,000 residents and thousands of acres.
The roads are as smooth as satin, and the emergency personnel response time averages under 6 minutes.
The HOA fees are $35 a month per 1/2 acre lot.
Oh, and they also have their own water source and purification plant, and their own electricity. Those fees come to about $65 a month.
All privately funded.
Their property taxes for a 1700 square foot home are about $700 a year.
In all fairness, you ought to mention the $275 a year per person membership fee. That and the $65 a month and the $700 tax adds up to $1800 a year, or about 9% of the median income of the residents.
In contrast, I pay $475 a month rent, and my landlord pays all those fees and taxes for me, and being retired (like most of the people in Hot Springs Village), I pay almost no taxes.
How hard is it to keep roads "smooth as satin" where it never freezes, there is no through traffic or heavy vehicles, and the speed limit is 25? Go out on the highway in Pennslvania and try to maintain the roads that cheaply.
My taxes have gone up, my husbands health care out of his pay has went up, gas and home heating oil has gone up, food gone up, salary gone down all in three years. I will not get my hair done, I will not get a housekeeper, I will not buy clothes, I will not contribute to charity, I will not get a massage or hire a personal trainer, I am not going on vacation or go out to eat. Keep voting they way you are, I am voting by not spending my money on anything not needed this time!! Get the point. Don't think a vote in the wrong direction wont effect your life too!
Your taxes have gone up... really (I'm talking about Federal Income Tax)? This doesn't make sense because your taxes have not gone up. If you are talking hypothetically, then you must be in the top tax bracket, so I guess that 5% extra for only income OVER the top tax bracket will prevent you from giving to charity (which is a tax write-off), shop, groom, vacation, and eat out? Yeah right
Your taxes have gone up... really (I'm talking about Federal Income Tax)? This doesn't make sense because your taxes have not gone up. If you are talking hypothetically, then you must be in the top tax bracket, so I guess that 5% extra for only income OVER the top tax bracket will prevent you from giving to charity (which is a tax write-off), shop, groom, vacation, and eat out? Yeah right
I am frugal. I wont spend on those things until we get rid of this jerk in the white house.
In all fairness, you ought to mention the $275 a year per person membership fee.
There is no $275 per year membership fee as far as I can tell, and according to my parents who live there. Can you provide a link to that information?
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That and the $65 a month and the $700 tax adds up to $1800 a year, or about 9% of the median income of the residents.
The $65 a month is for utilities. Most of us pay utilities each month. Most of us pay more than $65 for our utilities as well.
The median income for HSV residents is $44,971. Nine percent of that would be $4,047.39 - not $1800. $1800 is about THREE PERCENT of the median income. I don't see what your point is.
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In contrast, I pay $475 a month rent, and my landlord pays all those fees and taxes for me, and being retired (like most of the people in Hot Springs Village), I pay almost no taxes.
You should realize that you are paying property taxes indirectly - they are rolled into the price of your monthly rent. All fees and taxes are.
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How hard is it to keep roads "smooth as satin" where it never freezes, there is no through traffic or heavy vehicles, and the speed limit is 25? Go out on the highway in Pennslvania and try to maintain the roads that cheaply.
Wow, so full of misinformation.
It DOES freeze up in the mountains of Arkansas, which is where HSV is.
And the speed limit for most of that area is 45.
But -people do generally have a choice regarding where they live. My parents choose not to live in Pennsylvania for a variety of reasons.
And couple of nights a year down to 28 does not create the frost-heaves that tear up northern roads.
So what's your point? The ratios still don't match up. Nearly everyone pays utilities so factoring in the VERY LOW COST of utilities in HSV isn't comparing apples to oranges. Property taxes in Arkansas are some of the lowest in the nation. And $700 is not 9 percent of $24,492 either. Nine percent is $2204.
Property taxes PLUS utilities PLUS basic HOA fees (all that is required of HSV residents) come to $1900 a year for my parents - which is about average for that area. That sure as heck beats where I live - where it's considered severe weather at 30 degrees and if we get one inch of snow the schools close!
My point is that private entities can often work more efficiently than government entities, and I used Hot Springs Village as an example. Of course you can't apply every single factor at HSV to every single place all over the United States. That doesn't negate the fact that often private entities can work more efficiently that bureaucratic government systems.
HSV has a very good business model in place. Many municipalities would do well to look at their model and see if they can replicate some of the efficiencies in their own communities.
The point is that everyone pays for what they consume. There is no free lunch in Hot Springs Village, no matter who supplies it. In your case, nearly everything what works "more efficiently" than government are not-for-profit providers, that can custom-build their service for a community that has, for example, almost no school children, or a nearly zero crime rate since new residents have to be approved, or no traffic from non-residents crashing the gate. When the profit motive is involved, the shareholders rake off as much from the top as inefficient waste would take from the bottom. Which is why America, the most privatized, smallest-government (except for our sprawling War Department) nation in the world, is in such a mess. (Yes, the US had a War Department until 1947, when it was given its present euphemism which means the same thing. Here, I join your side, and say let private capital run the wars for profit, instead of taxing me for them.)
Last edited by jtur88; 09-26-2012 at 12:08 PM..
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