What if taxes were paid based on what the quality of service is provided?

In response to last week’s question, “What if taxes were paid based on what the quality of service is provided?”, my friend Richard presented an idea worth sharing before answering the question. He wrote, “No phrase in the English language has been misapplied as much as the term “civil servant.” I believe President John F. Kennedy captured things perfectly when he stated that “Washington (D. C.) is a city of Southern efficiency and Northern charm.””

My sailing friend Tony, who also has the experience of living under British rule, concluded, “This would not work. We would need a government dept to access the quality plus an audit dept to check up on them…..this would just increase taxes further.” My friend Royce and Ted determined, “Well Hell then!! Uncle Sam will be paying me!”

My social media friend Andy did some math. “Unhappy with Congress' performance of the prior evaluation period so let's deduct that...547 employees, $174,000/yr each, $95mil or $0.29 refund per citizen. Uuugh.” He then noted “plus their pensions, their flights and their offices in their districts and their car service and… http://usgovinfo.about.com/od/uscongress/a/congresspay.htm. From this frustration, Andy recalled that Benjamin Franklin, during the Constitutional Convention, considered proposing that elected government officials not be paid for their service."

My cousin Wes determined, “This could create a death spiral of lower taxes yielding lower quality services and less government. On the other hand if faced with less pay or no job, perhaps civil servants would work harder for us, be more efficient, control their spending, be more polite and give us good government. I have good experiences with government employees, but I’m not dealing with Medicare, Medicaid, Social Services etc.”

My dad’s beach buddy Bob suggested, “It all depends on who is providing the service. It used to be 2 bucks but now range up to $100. Some pay even more for superior service.”

Please share your thoughts about "things that make you go 'Hmmm' ”:

How can you be certain that in this world nothing is certain but death and taxes? (paraphrasing Benjamin Franklin)

Live well...laugh often and heartily…. have a good week and never regret anything that made you smile!

Hal

For those observing the exodus of Charlton Heston from Egypt and the ensuing religious freedom, Happy Passover! If you want to see what the exodus would be like if social media was around, visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIxToZmJwdI. And if you need a smile, enjoy a version of Wasted Away in Manischewitzville at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rcr_vg8iRdw