Silo that feeds trough is empty

Silo that feeds trough is empty

I just wrote our real estate tax first installment check; it reminded me of lessons learned from the farm. I was not raised on a farm but was blessed with the privilege of spending summers on a relative’s farm from age 11 to 15. It was a wonderful experience with many life lessons learned.

The hogs were the most interesting to observe and they remind me of our many governmental entities as they go to the trough of tax assessments and levies. Hogs, like humans, have insatiable wants and desires. They eat until all the feed is gone. Taxing entities have insatiable wants and desires and will not be satisfied until all of our resources are theirs to consume. Do you realize that the first federal income tax was limited to 10 percent based on the concept that the government should not expect more than what a tithe for our church should be?

Hogs do not share; they fight off others to get what they want. Have you heard the rhetoric between local and state elected officials about who is funding the pathetic state of public retirements? Do you know that our local real estate taxes will double if the state of Illinois shifts the burden back onto local taxing entities?

Hogs will attack the food source if they don’t get enough. Has your household income gone up these last years like government spending? Most of us have tightened our budgets and cut back. Is your employer funding more into your retirement?

It is time that we start sending responsible elected officials who will lead and manage the governmental systems to ensure that basic services are provided and that the future sustainability of governmental entities are sustainable. The silo that feeds the trough is empty.

Ron Jaeger

St. Charles