Canadians have an addiction problem. They’re addicted to government:
Consider the following:
- The Government of Saskatchewan alone spent over $11 billion last year (April 2010 to March 2011) to provide services for its citizens. That works out to nearly $11,000 for every man, woman, and child in the province, or $44,000 for a family of four.
- The average wage for a person in Saskatchewan is about $44,000/year.
- If the provincial government relied solely on the income tax of its citizens, then a family of four would have no choice but to have both parents work . . . one to provide for the family and one to provide for the government.
Now consider what other levels of government spend.
- At the municipal level, the City of Regina has an operating budget of about $2500/person. Federally, the Government of Canada spends about $8,000/person.
- All together our three levels of Government spend over $21,000/person . . . or $84,000 for a family of four.
We have reached a point where the average earnings of a two income family can barely support the spending of government . . . let alone pay for food, clothing, and shelter for themselves and their children.
The reality is that “free” public services come with a cost . . . and these costs increase as we demand more “free” stuff.
One of the truths about addictions is that they require larger and larger “hits” . . . that provide ever smaller and smaller “highs”. This results in people either becoming so dependent on the substance that they cannot function without it . . . or they pursue the addiction to its ultimate conclusion, an overdose.
H/T to Katewerk for the link.
