A college student near and dear to my heart was involved in a debate of sorts about universal free college tuition. She either chose or was designated to take the side of being in favor of free college for all Americans. So, we had a talk where I shared some of my opinions, as I am known to do on occasion.
Simply put, there is no free stuff, whether it’s college tuition, food vouchers, of bottles of water given out in Flint, Mich. Somebody paid for it. Somebody always pays for it.
In the case of government, the government has no money of its own. In order to operate, the government, whatever government it happens to be, has to get money from some other outside source. On occasion, this may take the form of fees. It order to get a marriage license, a couple has to pay a fee. The same with a fishing or hunting license. There are countless fees levied by various governments.
Sometimes, the government takes in money by getting people to voluntarily contribute. One of the greatest examples of this is the lottery. If I purchase a lottery ticket, I know full well that the ticket I receive has only a 1 in 178 million chance of winning. But, someone will win, as they always eventually do, so, the thinking goes, it might be me.
All over the country, millions of students are receiving grants from the government because millions of others people gave those governments millions of dollars for the chance, however slim, to hit the big one.
However, most of the money spent by government is taken by force from its citizens in the form of taxes. “Oh, it’s not by force,” you say? Just try going a few years without paying those taxes and see how that works for you.
Now, most people understand that a certain level of taxation if necessary and even desirable. After all, we drive on highways, are protected by police and firefighters, and are defended by a powerful military that are all funded by taxation.
But make no mistake — none of this money has its source in the government. There was a time when there were no fees. People got married, fished, and hunted all without having to pay a fee to a government. Those days are over.
People have always gambled but now the government sponsors the biggest games in the history of man. The largest lottery recently tipped $1 billion! The Mafia could never aspire to those kinds of incentives. And, of course, from the earliest history of humanity, powerful leaders demanded tribute from their vassals.
So, it’s not “free.” None of it is “free.” Somebody has to pay for everything.
In our nation, the government doesn’t give anything to anyone that it doesn’t first take or receive from someone else.
For the past several years, our church has provided devotionals for the seasons of Advent and Lent. These devotionals cost about $1.25 each plus postage. We put those out just before the seasons begin and encourage people to take them. There is “no charge” to take them, so one could get the idea that they are “free.”
But they are not. They are provided to all because the givers in the church give. They pay for them so that all can receive the benefit. Somebody always pays for things that are advertised as “free.”
So, if the citizens demand that certain students — or all students — be able to attend college without the students having to personally pay tuition, then so be it. But don’t call it “free.” It isn’t free.
Anyone who is required to transfer their money to the government — those who will lose their homes or go to jail if they don’t pay their taxes — those are the people who pay for it.
Everything has to be paid for. Some people pay a great deal, while others pay little or even nothing. There is no free stuff.
[David Epps is the pastor of the Cathedral of Christ the King, Sharpsburg, GA (www.ctkcec.org). He is the bishop of the Mid-South Diocese which consists of Georgia and Tennessee (www.midsouthdiocese.org) and the Associate Endorser for the Department of the Armed Forces, U. S. Military Chaplains, ICCEC. He may contacted at frepps@ctkcec.org.]
