Party Politics

Speaking of parties, is one political party more honest than the other when it comes to disclosing the mess we are handing our kids? No. Each party has its constituents, all of whom share the convenient property of being alive and being able to vote. Future kids don't have that luxury, and current kids are kept far away from the polling booths. So the goal becomes to make the grown-ups happy. The Democratic grown-ups are happy when the government spends more money (on them). The Republican grown-ups are happy when the government raises less taxes (from them). The ideal solution, then, is to spend more and tax less.

Kotlikoff & Burns, The Coming Generational Storm .

What more do we need to know about politics?

By the way, I think this book by Kotlikoff and Burns is a must read.