Aspiration vs Desperation

There was a line in the West Wing, which if I could be bothered to trawl through 6 seasons of scripts I could find for you [it was S3-E3]. It was spoken by the (Democrat) President Bartlett, and went something like this:

The trouble with the American Dream is that no-one likes taxes on millionaires, because they’re all dreaming of the day they’ll be millionaires.

Although this is obviously a fictional line, from a fictional president, it beautifully demonstrates the difference between the aspirational Yanks and the bitter, hopeless Brits.

It also demonstrates one of the reasons why I don’t fit into the defeatist pussified shithole this country is becoming & despair of its feckless and coddled inhabitants.

I don’t earn £150k – but I’m getting there and I will get there, so I’m damned if I’ll support Cameron’s pledge to keep the 45p tax. Yeah – pragmatism. He’s playing to the audience. But instead of giving them what they think they want to hear, how about this:

Labour’s punitive tax on high earners is symbolic of one thing: They don’t like people who do well for themselves. They don’t want you to do well for yourself.

We, on the other hand, are committed to building a Britain where aspiration, determination and success are valued, applauded and appreciated. Where you can succeed, freed of the deterrent effects of an anti-success government and a welfare system that binds the poor to a life of welfare, hopelessness and worthlessness.

I won’t inherit anything and I don’t intend to leave anyone behind to inherit anything I may accumulate (the Cats’ Protection League will be pleased to learn). But how about this, Cameron:

A Conservative government would be a fair government, which is why we will raise the threshold for inheritance tax to £3 million.

For why? Because that £3 million has been accrued over a lifetime of commendable hard work and prudence. Tax has been paid upon the original earnings and upon the interest earned by the savings. Why should tax be paid again on the same money?

But it won’t happen, because Cameron isn’t intent on leading this country. He’s interested in obtaining power for his own purposes, like every other one of the troughers in Parliament, and leaning whichever way the wind blows**. Just like Blair.

What a choice we won’t have at the next election.

AJ

** UPDATE: As if to underline my point, via Burning Our Money, I see that Tebbit reckons policy is being driven by focus groups. All we need to hear now is that Cameron has brought Philip Gould in.

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