Or Rich People Are Extremely Smart

As my dad said in paraphrasing someone else, "... once 51% of the population figures out that they can vote themselves free money, then you can say goodbye to democracy." Maybe.

However, taxes are but one cost, and I won't even have to get on a high horse about the heartstring value to be attributed to helping those less fortunate, etc. Nope, quantifiable costs such as avoiding an unnecessary war loom large. Just because Bush's fiscal policy was to put off paying such debts doesn't mean they won't become due with interest. $3 trillion is a hefty chunk of change; forget about the economic cost due to lost leverage internationally and other factors. (My cousin, a very productive and successful worker, was called up and sent to Iraq twice and will essentially now lose his job, not to mention he understandably may not have been the most productive worker in between stints. His wife raising three kids on her own may have lost a bit of production too.) I said I wouldn't play heartstrings, but then you must include the cost of human life lost from these bad decisions when voting.

This is not a shot at McCain. I like him and was on board until he picked Palin, but the actual cost of a potential Palin presidency would have far exceeded any tax raise I foresee. Bush lowered taxes and sent out checks, but I still feel like today I would have been richer and more comfortable with someone else in the White House.