How to keep cash in our pockets

WHILE a cornerstone of modern democracy is every citizen’s right to take part in the public process – in particular when deciding on issues that affect the citizen, the logistical challenges in allowing every individual to vote for every issue is so large that most countries choose a representative democracy instead.

Simply put, each citizen then has the right to vote for an elected official to represent them either nationally or locally. Few fully understand this. What is grasped even less is the fact that those citizens enjoy, not only the right to take part (albeit through someone else), but they also effectively own what is commonly known as public property.

This means that the destruction of such results is money coming directly out of their pockets.

Burn a fire station down and we all, directly and indirectly, pay for a new one.

And because the only mechanism to collect money is the tax system, VAT and other taxes then rise.

Not only does such damage and destruction have a spillover effect (through increased taxes) into the larger community, but the destruction of a public entity that provides service delivery means that less service delivery then takes place.

A very simple formula shows the result: less service delivery = less wellbeing = more poverty.

In The Netherlands it is not uncommon for someone to reprimand another person for breaking a municipal by-law.

The reason? Laws are there to not only protect people but also to save money.

The loss of public transport could mean people are unable to get to work and thus the economy slows down. Tourists sense this and stay away. Investors shrug their shoulders and go elsewhere.

Citizens of most countries therefore respect this and go so far in some cases as to protect something as vital as public transport.

The reality is that the entire economy, together with every ambulance, police vehicle and municipal building belongs to every citizen of this country.

It is only when individual people take full ownership that such will be protected instead of wasted.

And full ownership will never happen without education.

Unless civics is taught in a country, those citizens simply do not understand the financial realities in a community, local or national.

Taking ownership means fully understanding that the next R100 in one’s pocket will disappear with the destruction of public property; if for every burning that takes place we were each forced to hand over that R100, the penny would drop.

What is the cost of every prisoner every month? About R10 000.

And the cost of a back or head injury in a motor vehicle accident? About R600 000.

That’s money out of our pockets. Every time.

Only some economics-awareness course can possibly teach this.

And a country that does not teach civics with a strong financial element, is a country that is doomed, because it is a country whose citizens do not take ownership.

Countries that do show how each citizen hands over their power and money through taxes to elected officials might also be more mindful of whom they elect.

Richard Drefuss says it all here: https://youtu.be/n4kfalFhyh4