Autobiography - The Galindo Group

Ram Galindo THE MAKING OF AN AMERICAN Page 94
To be sure, the practice of taxing the people for purposes of dubious constitutional
justification does not fall exclusively on the Democratic Party, as Republicans are fond
of declaring. The record of the 20 th Century shows without a doubt that government has
grown under Democratic administrations at rates not matched by Republicans and that
we, the people, have suffered the greatest depredations to our constitutional right to
keep the benefits of our creations under Democrats. The winds that ushered the
greatest leaps in open-ended interpretation of the “general welfare” clause were steered
to new heights by Democratic Presidents Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt and
Lyndon Johnson. Not denying that they did many good and necessary things, in my
mind they did more to destroy the virtue of self-reliance in America than other
presidents of the 20 th Century.
But Republicans are not free of guilt. For example, mostly under the “general welfare”
clause, Herbert Hoover increased federal spending by 38 % in his administration,
Dwight Eisenhower by 30 %, and Richard Nixon, a big sinner, by 70 %. Nixon also went
against a basic rule of value-creating capitalism by imposing price controls on the
economy. George Bush (41 st president) added a 12 % increase. In just the four years of
his administration our money lost 13 % of its value through inflation and he gave us the
litigious American with Disabilities Act. He also passed a huge tax increase despite his
pledge of no new taxes. This is the kind of record that hurts my ability to pursue
happiness and has contributed to my decision to write this book. Like everyone, I feel
happiness becomes elusive when I cannot hold on to what I make. The thrill of
accomplishment is not complete without control of the rewards it creates.
BUDDING ENTREPRENEUR.
I remember well the classroom and teacher I had in the fifth grade of grammar school.
In 1948 Cochabamba, books and teaching aids were not abundant. Taking notes in
class and doing homework at home was how we made our books. In the process I
discovered I had a certain ability to draw comic book characters. My parents would not
give my brothers or me an allowance to buy snacks at school. In my family’s petty-cash
allotment there was no line item for snacks at school. We had to earn the pennies we
wanted for extraordinary expenses.
As I said before, in the town of my birth mostly everything was in walking or biking
distance. School let out for two hours at noon so we all could go home for lunch.
Consequently, allowances for children were not known in my home. At the time I wished
I had those pennies to buy me snacks, but later I learned to thank my parents for
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