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I remember
When you were down
You would always come running to me
I never denied you
And I would guide you through all of your difficulties
Now I’m calling on citizens from all over the world
This is Captain America calling
I built you up when you were down on your knees
So will you catch me now I’m falling
—The Kinks, Catch Me Now I’m Falling
True caring involves sacrifice. You willingly surrender your money, time, or safety to help someone out. “Caring” without sacrifice isn’t caring; it’s posing.
Now let’s turn to Ukraine and its war with Russia. Do I care about Ukraine? In one sense, I do. Few people on earth are more deserving of being humbled than Vladimir Putin. But in another more meaningful sense, I don’t. I’m certainly not willing to shed my blood for Ukrainian freedom, and I’m certainly not willing to forego a large chunk of the one federal “give-me-that” I’m currently receiving. If the federal government decided to place the burden of defending Ukrainian freedom on the backs of Obamacare recipients, I would be out over four thousand dollars (see chart below).
| Program | Recipients | Average Annual Benefit | Annual Cost to Each Recipient of Providing $60 Billion Worth of Military and Humanitarian Aid to Ukraine | New Average Annual Benefit if Recipient Really Cared about Ukraine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ACA Insurance Premium Subsidies | 14,511,077 | $4,809.48 | $4,134.72 | $674.76 |
But let’s suppose that the cost of defending Ukrainian freedom wasn’t the sole responsibility of Obamacare recipients. Let’s suppose instead that the federal government wants to hit every single taxpayer in America with a “Screw Putin” surcharge (see chart below). Would I be willing to accept a tax surcharge of $353.60 to aid Ukrainian freedom? It’s a very tantalizing proposition—especially when you consider that the Ukrainians, unlike our shit allies in Iraq and Afghanistan, don’t need us to do their fighting for them. But in the end, I would still say no. And it’s not about the money. It’s about another aspect of caring that steps beyond the realm of sacrifice and is equally as important. Let me explain.
| Number of Taxpayers (Pre-Pandemic) | Cost to Each Taxpayer of Providing $60 Billion Worth of Military and Humanitarian Aid to Ukraine |
|---|---|
| 169,684,000 | $353.60 |
Do you trust our leaders? I don’t. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Never in the annals of human history has there been a leadership class so full of themselves and so impotent when it comes to fixing serious problems. The “Screw Putin” surcharge, if allowed, wouldn’t be a one-time thing. Unlike our WWII leaders, our current leaders can’t win wars. They’re only good at prolonging wars and securing defeat—er, I mean—”peace with honor.” So this year’s surcharge would turn into many more years of surcharges. And at some point, trivial surcharges wouldn’t be enough. Ukrainian freedom would require a $500 surcharge, and then a $1,000 surcharge, and then a $2,000 surcharge. Giving our leaders a license to “fix” anything is a very risky endeavor—especially when it comes to geopolitics. In other words, when it comes to Ukraine’s war with Russia, our leaders are far more likely to impoverish us than rebuke Putin and save the Ukrainians.
Now let’s turn from our pathetic leadership class and take stock of America. When you ponder the state of America, do you see a “shining city on a hill” or a dying empire? I, sadly, see the latter. And if you think I’m being overwrought, consider the following:
- The national debt is now over $31 trillion—121 percent of GDP.
- Outstanding student loan debt is now a sobering $1.75 trillion. And whose fault is that? Evil Republicans and stingy taxpayers, of course. It’s not the education-industrial complex that forces students to buy a 40-course degree when a 10- or 12-course degree is more than adequate for most majors.
- The average American household has $6,473 in credit card debt.
- Forty-six percent of renters spend more than 30 percent of their income on rent. Twenty-three percent of renters spend more than 50 percent of their income on rent.
- Insulin is six times more expensive in America than in Mexico.
- Sixty-four percent of American adults are living paycheck to paycheck.
- Nearly three-quarters of American adults are either overweight or obese.
- Sixty-six percent of American adults are taking prescription drugs to address some ailment.
- America’s birthrate is below replacement level.
- And of the babies that Americans manage to produce, 40.5 percent of them are delivered by unwed mothers.
- Despite forty-plus years of speeches, rallies, white papers, programs, bond referendums, and higher taxes, the problems of homelessness, illegal immigration, black underachievement in education, crime, and deindustrialization remain as intractable as ever.
- Many Americans not only believe the fantasy that men and women can change their sex but also believe that anyone who fails to submit to this fantasy should be ruined professionally, financially, and socially.
- Many Americans—and a majority of Americans under 30—despise our Founding Fathers and our Constitution.
- Three of the most important guardrails of libocracy—free speech, due process, and equal protection of the law—are now openly mocked and flouted on the campuses of our most influential colleges.
- Only 34 percent of Americans trust the news that our mass media produces.
- Over 91,000 Americans died from drug overdoses in 2020.
- Hardly a week goes by without some psycho committing a mass shooting.
I hate to break it to you, but Captain America is falling. We have weak leaders and a weak population. And that’s the main reason why I don’t care about Ukraine. In order to care, you got to be 1) willing to sacrifice and 2) able to sacrifice. A majority of Americans might be willing to sacrifice for Ukraine and show they care by taking a direct financial hit. I doubt it, though. It’s one thing to put the bill for Ukrainian freedom on the national credit card and it’s another thing to make that bill payable every year come tax time. But even if Americans were willing to accept a “Screw Putin” tax surcharge every year, we’re in no position to help anyone. Only the strong can help the weak, and we’re not strong. We’re a screwed-up people with screwed-up leaders on the verge of collapse.
Final Thoughts
Okay, groovy freedomist, that’s all I got. What say you? I say Captain America is falling, and if we want to catch him, we got to let the world fix its own problems for the next 10 or 20 years. We got our own problems to fix.
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