From time to time I wonder why don’t do things differently.   This blog is just a short list of my “why don’t we” items.

Why don’t we charge Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE, South Korea, Taiwan, and other assorted countries for the defense we provide for them?  Living under the American defense umbrella is a clear benefit to them that costs the United States hundreds of billions of dollars a year.  In the case of Saudi Arabia, we pay for their defense and also pay them for their oil.  None of this makes any sense to me.  If they don’t pay up, we would officially drop our willingness to protect them in a time of crisis.

Why don’t we pass a balanced budget amendment and stop raising our debt ceiling every two or three years?

Why don’t we pass strict term limits for Congressmen and Senators?  8 years (four terms) for a Congressman and 12 years (two terms) for a US Senator would be just about perfect.  It is time to re-establish “citizen” politicians and put an end to empire building.

Why doesn’t President Obama just produce a copy of his birth certificate?  Bing, bang; the controversy would be over.

Why don’t we abandon our current income tax for a tax on consumption?  The fair tax is the name for this proposal and it would be easy to administer.  If we want to grow our economy, let’s tax consumption instead of production!

Why don’t the other 49 states follow the lead of Nebraska and establish a one-house legislature?   You don’t need two houses of government to run a state; Nebraska’s been running its unicameral legislature since 1934.  By the way, Nebraska’s legislature has only 49 members.

Why don’t we require citizens to register at the appropriate government office before they can vote?  This isn’t a “poll tax”.  If citizens don’t have a driver’s license the state can provide them with a state identification card (photo ID) at no charge.  For those who don’t make the effort to register at least 30 days before an election; too bad.  They will better appreciate their right to vote as they register for the next election.