A completely separate thought: paying taxes in this country doesn't make me feel any more connected to it. In fact, the opposite may be true. And while I self-tag as a bleeding heart, the taxes I pay to the U.S. don't really offer much return on the investment either. So, what am I becoming? Surely, not a grumbling libertarian. I mean, come on. How silly is that political leaning? Whoops, I mean, political stand. Because a libertarian who tries to lean on anything should certainly fall flat on her face unless she's provided her own column for the purpose. Otherwise, she's not very principled, is she?
No, I think my problem is personal, not political. (Granted, I'm not thrilled with sending taxes to the U.S. to continue funding the war, nor do I believe that the government is efficiently managing the fun money we send it.) But, this doesn't mean I don't want to pay for my governments. It's just, I want to pay for my governments to govern me, which, in the case of the U.S. means that I want them to maintain or build programs that will take care of those who need it now and be available for me when or if I need it later. In the case of NZ, I think I need to pay a little more attention. See, it's old school here. There's still a level of accountability in this government that shocks my long-neglected advocate's heart. But I don't necessarily investigate the broad options available to me. Maybe I'm going to go have a chat with legal aid. Maybe I'd like to visit the free museum. Oh, here's something I know I appreciate already: moderately clean, public superloos.
I do use the roads, as a motorist and cyclist, and though I moan the absence of bike lanes, I'm becoming aware of a slow conversion among policy makers here to ensure greater safety to bike riders. Okay. There's that. My doctor's visits are relatively inexpensive, though I don't care to push that benefit, thank you very much. When I decide to go back to school, I'll get a kickass deal. Alright. So, I know the taxes are flowing toward resources that I, as a human being, can actually use (unlike the money I sent to the U.S., which seems to accrue to non-human corporations whose quest for parity has put them in a power position that I won't likely know in my lifetime). But I do need to create the connections that make me feel these benefits more keenly rather than relying on a rambling blog post to stoke some cognitive affirmation of them.
Maybe I should cruise by the Community Advice Clinic. They exist just to answer those questions that keep us awake at night. They're like google people, except they don't get paid and they actually talk to people who don't live on the interwebs.
I'll get myself connected yet. Here I go. Right after I hold my nose for that warm Corona.
No comments:
Post a Comment