Nothing is free; someone — either voluntarily or under compulsion — has to pay

At your request: This week's California Commentary by Jon Coupal
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** California Commentary
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** One-party rule corrupts California's election process
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By Jon Coupal

There’s a particularly creepy scene in the children’s classic, “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang,” where a diabolical villain lures two kids from their hiding place by walking down the street calling out, “Ice cream. Get some ice cream! Today, it’s all free!”

The children can’t resist and they emerge from a building to get into a carriage where they are promised the sweets. Once inside, the curtains fall from the side of the carriage to reveal they have walked into a metal cage.

It’s human nature to desire what we want without cost. But as the late Nobel economist Milton Friedman reminds us, “there’s no such thing as a free lunch.” Indeed, he published a series of his essays in a book of the same title. His point was simple: Nothing is free; someone — either voluntarily or under compulsion — has to pay.

If offered a Ferrari, I’d probably resist my initial instinct to respond in the affirmative and ask the obvious questions – how much and who’s going to pay for it?

A recent poll from the Public Policy Institute of California illustrates how the “cost” question is important. One of the questions was whether respondents thought that “the state budget situation in California — that is, the balance between government spending and revenues — is a big problem, somewhat of a problem, or not a problem for the people of California today?”

Regrettably, the question lacks context and clarity. One respondent could believe that the budget imbalance is a big problem because California isn’t taxing enough, while another could believe it’s a big problem because of overspending.

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Jon Coupal is the President of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association (HJTA). He is a recognized expert in California fiscal affairs and has argued numerous tax cases before the courts.
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