Tax Dollars!!!!!!

Heck yeah! Our current education system is a prime example of the misuse of tax dollars. OH - and our health care system as well. I'm a 35 yr old female who works full time and pays taxes ( a lot of them because i don't have children nor do i own property) and I still can't get affordable health care. I'm only 1 in 100's just like me! Our government would rather spend tax dollars on weapons and person salary hikes than help the people that carry this country on their backs. Sorry - kinda went off on a tangent there ;}

Just a recap, so far posters want more money to go toward: stem cell research alternative fuel cells education health care keeping illegal immagrants out homeless And less money to go toward: welfare Overseas illegal immigrants I'd like everyone to check out http://www.thebudgetgraph.com/view. It is some interesting information on the federal budget. I am not in agreement that our tax dollars could be better spent by our government. I believe that our tax dollars should be spent by us, as in not collected in the first place. I agree with the "don't spend money ons" above, but I do not agree with some of the really big "do spend money ons" Stem cell research: - The only way in which the government should be involved is that they should not allow people to be killed just to get their stem cells. Aside from that, the government should neither fund nor hinder the funding of stem cell research. If the cells are legally obtained and a company feels they can eventually make money off the research (which many do), then let them go for it. Alternative Fuel Cells: - Since the government currently taxes gas so much, they might be slightly involved in this, but not significantly. Again, if private companies...(see last comment) Education: - (This is going to be unpopular, I know) The government should not be in charge of deciding what our next generation learns. As such, the national government should spend $0 on education. State and local governments should spend $0 on education. The federal government should not require children to go to school (which is the reason why the government started public schools). This is all 100% the parents' responsibility. Don't think parents can afford to pay for schooling for children, BS. The average private school spends less than half of what an average public school does on a per student basis. And, the average private school is considered to provide a significantly better education than a public school, by definition in our current situation. Health Care: - We do not want government healthcare. The best two things the government can do as far as healthcare costs are concerned is provide a better basis as to what can be awarded in a lawsuit against healthcare professionals, and repeal all laws which prohibit insurance agencies from giving the kind of coverage that they chose. One of the biggest reasons why healthcare costs are so high is because 25-50% of the money spent goes toward insurance in case the doctor gets sued. This is so high because when a doctor does get sued, the amount of money the insurance company has to pay is often astronomical, especially if you consider cases where there is not actual PROOF of malpractice. Secondly, insurance companies currently have to cover certain things which are by definition uninsurable and cannot ask potential insureds certain questions which means that they have to assume that everyone has these kinds of problems. As such, premiums are somewhere between 4 and 5 times as much. The government is an issue on healthcare, but the answer is not more spending or more regulation, it is less regulation on the insurance business and more common sense in our courts. Keeping illegal immagrants out: - it is hard for me to argue with this. This is actually the reason for a national government. Ok, more spending here is acceptable, at least if more spending = better job done. By the way, I like the idea of putting up a big wall 10' in from the mexican border 25' deep and 25' tall. I heard the idea in jest, but it would likely be more effective. Homeless: - I'm not sure what the government is supposed to do about homeless people. If you mean increase spending on government programs to help the homeless, then forget that. Those programs would be much better done by private non-profit organizations. Long story short: Less government spending = more money to citizens = happier citizens = better America.

100% Yes!! I feel they tax us on some of the most weirdest things, and then for what? Do you see the money going back into Roads, etc. if that is what your Gas tax is for? And why do they always give Tax cuts to the Rich, and not care about the poor? And when they do such as President Bush does, and give the money to places like Iraq instead of helping those in the USA, you really begin to wonder.

YES, YES, YES! I feel that our country could do so much for our legal citizens that they just ignore. Our health care system is for the birds most of the time, our schools have so many needs that are ignored...like teachers having to buy their own supplies in many schools. We have too many homeless people on the streets, when our government could build housing for them. Instead, most of our tax dollars are being sent overseas to rebuild another country. I thought "charity begins at home", but sometimes I wonder what our government is thinking. We still have people in the Mississippi/Louisiana area that have had no homes since Katrina hit in 2005. Now they want to give SS to ILLEGAL aliens...I don't think so! They are here illegally. They have no right to any benefits that our government offers as long as they are here illegally. Now I'll get off my soapbox.

I definitely think our taxes should be spent at home. I don't understand how we can fix everyone else when we need help in our country. Look at all the homeless, the school systems. There are several things that everyone talks about changing and no one ever "gets around to it"

Like all the other responses I totally agree. Welfare, helth care, immigrants, and much more are things that our tax dollars are going to that need to be reevaluated. I say, "Focus on home before the rest of the world." Use our tax money to cure the problems here. I don't mean put band-aids on them, I mean get rid of them totally.

yes i do think that they can spend most of it here in the us instead over seas over else where we are hurting much worse than they are right now with most of our troops over there

Oh don't even get me started on that.The part that bothers me the most is that my taxdollar is supporting someone who is perfectly capable of working....but still they are on wellfare.I understand that we sometimes may have no choice but I've seen to many that just take that as the easy way out.So yes....I think the money could be spend better.