Did Sen. Phil Berger actually say "Leaving that $1 billion [in potential sales tax revenue] in the hands of the private sector will create 11,000 jobs"? Let's say each family will save $100 a year if the penny tax expires. If I saved it all up, I could take my family to dinner or a Bulls game. I can't fund a job with it.
But if I pool it with other people's $100, it would be a lot more, maybe a billion dollars. Then we would have the resources to do some good things, like educate children and young adults or provide health care to those who need it, or keep up our infrastructure. So it looks like we need a system to pool our resources for the good of everybody.
But wait! We have a system! It's called the state Treasury. And I've been putting my $100 there for a few years now. It slips in there so gradually that I haven't missed it. I hope it's gone to improve somebody's life. But with choices being made in Raleigh I am not optimistic.
