Obama’s oil tax plan puts taxpayers over a barrel

Leave it to the federal government. Finally, the American people have received a financial reprieve in their everyday lives, courtesy of lower gas prices, and all the feds can think of doing is slapping a $10 tax on every barrel of oil we import. This would raise the price of a gallon of gas at the pump by at least 25 cents.

Never mind the fact that the price of gas today is approximately the same as it was when Obama first became president. Apparently, between then and now we benefitted from a windfall and should be taxed accordingly.

One of the reasons advocates love this idea is because we could put the added revenue towards infrastructure, better known as “shovel-ready” jobs. The president has been wanting money for shovel-ready jobs since he became president. It appeared he got his wish with the passing of his original $1 trillion stimulus bill. Yet I can still recall him yucking it up with a fellow crony that perhaps the shovel-ready jobs weren’t so ready after all. Ha-ha! That’s code for saying the money was spent elsewhere. That’s your money, my money, our money. Should give us a clue as to how much Obama respects the American taxpayer.

This guy is not worthy of another dime. Yet even as we speak, he’s asking Congress to pass a $4.1 trillion budget, with that budget having a $600 billion deficit. That still leaves the government collecting $3.5 trillion in taxes. In a country of 350 million people, that’s $10,000 for every man, woman and child.

I find it hard to believe that America can’t have what it needs because of a lack of money. Let the American people and not the government have more money for a change.

— Allan W. Gilmour

Salisbury

We’re drowning in trash

This is in response to the (Feb. 9) letter written by Mr. Ricketts. I agree with him 250 percent. Salisbury is beginning to look like a trash pile. I have said to some of my family members and friends that the inmates could pick up litter rather than lying back in a cell.

I don’t know if it was a mandatory part of the law or voluntary. Back in the 1950s when I was a child growing up, they had what was called the chain-gang. They were inmates who walked the streets picking up trash, with one or two guards with a shotgun following them. I used to sit on my front porch and watch them. I am sure some of the inmates would not want to be seen picking up trash while dressed in a striped jumpsuit. Maybe it would help cut down the crime rate if they realized they might have to clean the streets for free.

In all of my years as a citizen of Salisbury I have never seen so much litter. It is flowing over into some of the better parts of town.

— Barbara Sifford

Salisbury