Hey Washington, do as I say, not as I do

On my way home from a wonderful coffee break with a dear and special friend, I read this bumper sticker: “It’s the spending, stupid!  www.spendingrevolt.com”. True. True. But I wondered about the people behind the message. Upon returning to my humble abode, I conducted a quick review of the web site. It appears to be a non-partisan organization “focused on breaking the cycle of spending dependency in Washington.”

Sounds great! After a little more research I may sign on.

Who can disagree that government spending is out of control? This isn’t about assigning blame to the elephant or the donkey. Neither party can claim the high ground here. Both have conducted themselves in the likeness of the conquering warriors, plundering the defeated nation’s coffers and spending for the sheer thrill of it. Our fearless leaders dispense of our money as if it will never stop flowing, and they spend it with little-to-no accountability.

Makes you sick, doesn’t it?

But are we any better?

How many of us live within our means? Do we have a budget and adhere to it faithfully month-by-month? How many of us put money into savings and retirement accounts on a regular basis? How many of us purchase only what we need and forgo the wants and the luxuries, treating ourselves only when our savings account is sufficiently flush to cover those big and sometimes unexpected expenses, like a home AC or automotive repair?

How many of us:

• pay off our credit cards every month?
• own our cars?
• are current on health, life and home insurance?
• are satisfied with a two year-old PC, cell phone, or TV?
• have wardrobes that aren’t dominated by the latest fashions?
• keep and wear glasses, sunglasses, jewelry, shoes and so on that are a few years out of style?

You get the idea.

I suggest to you that until each of us takes on the responsibility of living within our means, and perhaps even sacrificing or delaying the purchase of some necessities until we can afford them, it is hypocritical of us to expect and demand our elected government officials to do the same.

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