Adult conversations need some adults

A few weeks ago, Senator Cramer suggested it was time to have an adult conversation about the national debt, Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.

Once again, initial thoughts of the “haves” is to stick it to the “have-nots.” For millions of people, these are not simply issues to be discussed casually in Washington. These programs are life lines.

Before we consider cutting lifelines, I propose everyone who benefitted from the big tax cut give it back.

An adult conversation should be wide open with everything on the table – inheritance taxes, the corporate tax rates, subsidies of all kinds, as well as programs for chronic dependents.

We should also look at the winners and losers in our economic and social systems. What are the “have- nots” getting as compared to the “haves”?

The pandemic brought us face-to-face with the reality of past sins. Three to six times as many black people are dying because they are employed in service industries.

They held low-paying service jobs because they never benefited from the schools and development opportunities experienced by others. The Civil War did not end slavery; it just reorganized. We still have oppression in various degrees.

As a civilized society, are we going to keep punishing African-Americans for being black or are we going to accept responsibility for the past by doing better in the future?

These folks shouldn’t have to spend more generations in perdition. If we can suddenly find trillions of dollars for emergencies, it seems we could invest a lot of money in African-American kids so they can grow up to be scientists and engineers who live to an old age in the next pandemic.

In an adult conversation, we should go beyond today’s ledger and look into the future. In the long run, money invested in kids will return great dividends to the tax coffers in the future.

Some of us still remember the end of World War II when millions of troops were mustered out in an economic system that didn’t have enough jobs. The G.I. bill provided them with educational opportunities that fostered a fantastic prosperity. In fact, the program worked so well that it has been continued, benefiting the economy and vets.

Kids are presented-oriented. Everything is today; tomorrow can take care of itself. Being an adult means we have passed that stage and can think in terms of months and years. But we see too much present-oriented policymaking to solve long term problems.

To participate in an adult conversation, we need to start thinking like adults.