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INTRODUCTION
From 2000 to 2006, Florida enjoyed
one of the best economies the United States has ever seen. The
Gross State Product (GSP) increased from $471 billion to $713
billion annually with some exceeding an 8% increase in GSP annually.
Unemployment dropped to 3.3%, wage growth was very strong, and
small business prospered (1). People from all across the United
States and other countries flocked to Florida to become part
of the strong economy, which made the economy even stronger.
A s of June 2008, Florida is mired in a recession caused primarily
by the near collapse of the housing market and a virtual halt
in commercial projects. Moody's 2008 Florida economic report
concludes that "Florida has fallen into a recession," which
is no surprise to Floridians. While government leaders will
point to external factors that have led to Florida's economic
woes, this book will detail how politically-based actions created
a "government induced recession." Florida fell
first and farthest, and most of the economic problems were the
result of government actions. As a commercial real estate developer,
I am one of the many architects of the Florida economy, and
as a small business owner, I have come to see "up close and
personal" the flaws of our system of taxation and regulation.
For three years, I have been telling taxpayers and government
officials that Florida is the next California, "from boom to
bust." At the late stages of the boom, it was hard to convince
anyone that hard times were ahead; but in my job as a developer
and owner of commercial property, I see firsthand how taxes
and regulations affect small business. I saw the bust
coming three years in advance, and I knew why it was coming
and what caused it.
This book is not intended to blame the government; rather, it
is an analysis of what went wrong, so that we can undo the errors
and fix the problems. While my readers will find out I am strongly
pro-business, I am a registered independent who voted for both
Clinton and Reagan. I am not out to make a political statement.
I simply want to offer up my observations - based on much experience
- to our current leaders and the taxpayers. This will enlighten
both groups so that together we can guide Florida back to prosperity.
I also hope that taxpayers from other parts of the United States
will learn from our mistakes here in Florida.
Before moving forward, I need to define "socialism" (i.e., how
it will be used in this book) and why I consider the recent,
massive tax increases and regulations in Florida as socialism.
As defined by Merriam-Webster dictionary socialism is "a broad
array of ideologies and political movements in which property
and wealth are subject to the control by the community for the
purpose of increasing social and economic equality." America
has been, in part, a socialist nation since the "New Deal" and
the "Great Society." Florida has prospered because, for the
most part, it was a free market economy.
This book will detail how Florida went from a free market economy
to a progressively more socialist economy. That transformation
has brought down the once mighty Florida economy to ruin. Without
meaningful tax reform and a movement back to free markets, there
is really no end in sight to the recession in Florida.
A sobering thought regarding this problem is a Zogby poll that
recently found that 37% of Florida residents - over 5 million
people - are considering leaving the State. The main reason
they are considering moving is because of high taxes. If only
10% actually move, the economic consequences will be devastating.
If that many people move, the Florida economy will be in a long
term recession due to a lower demand for housing and lower economic
output.
Thomas Jefferson stated, "The government that governs best governs
least." If Thomas Jefferson were alive today and paying taxes
in Florida, he might be so mad that he might consider organizing
an army to overthrow our current form of government! Florida
has become so heavily burdened with taxes, regulations, and
government that the prosperity of the citizens has been compromised
for the benefit of the State (which sounds like the definition
of socialism to me).
A s a small business owner and property owner with over 120
commercial tenants, I have an insider's view of the effect of
government regulations and taxes on small business. I see every
dollar of tax revenue being extracted from the dozens of small
business owners I interact with daily; I hear every complaint
from them about regulations; and, I see how taxes and regulations
affect not only the small business owner, but their employees
and our economy, as well. This book is not economic theory:
it is economic reality as experienced by a small businessman,
written by an owner of shopping centers that house many different
types of small businesses, and it's based on a firsthand view
of the effects of taxes and regulations on small business.
Costs stemming from government come out of your pocket.
In growing my small business, I came to realize how much time,
energy and resources are spent in complying with regulations
and rules enacted by our government. The time and resources
I devoted to the mandates of the government grew, as did the
cost of compliance with government regulation. At the same time,
the time and energy I spent on my customers shrank. This should
come as no surprise to small business owners, but what may surprise
many private citizens is that the entire cost of government
(regulations and taxes) is directly deducted from the
wages of private citizens, not from the "deep" pockets
of the "rich."
In this book, I will detail how our government not only taxes
small business and private citizens directly, but how indirectly
taxes and regulations lower the standard of living of every
private citizen in Florida. With the explosive growth of government,
our standard of living will continue to erode and further repress
the people in our State. I wrote this book not for profit, but
to start a revolution… of taxpayers' awareness… a revolution
aimed at demonstrating to the common taxpayer and small business
owner how important, no, how crucial, it is for
us to reverse the growth of government and renew the spirit
of the American Dream. This book will put into focus the manner
in which excessive taxes and regulation are lowering the wage
of the average taxpayer, while at the same time increasing the
cost of living. It will also detail how every regulation and
every tax lowers the standard of living, and will make suggestions
on how to correct the situation. This book is not partisan
politics, and my goal is an economic revolution, not a political
one. The purpose of this book is to show the negative
effect of today's Florida government policies on the average
working Floridian. The book will ask: Why should a government
civil servant have a higher standard of living than the taxpayer
who supports them?
After reading this book you will understand that the laws, regulations,
and policies enacted in Florida over the past two decades do
not benefit the average taxpayer. The populist (or socialist)
trend in Florida has devastated our economy, and we must seek
meaningful reform if we are going to return Florida to economic
prosperity and reduce the suffering of our citizens. } |
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FAIR USE NOTICE: This site contains
copyrighted material, the use of which may not always have been specifically
Authorized by the copyright owner. Such material is made available for
educational purposes, and as such this constitutes 'fair use' of any such
copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright
Act. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this
site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior
interest in receiving the included information for research and educational
purposes.
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Matt Falconer is a local activist.
He has just released a book "The Socialist Republic of Florida"
How Florida went from one the best economies of all time to
a "Government-Induced Recession"
Read
An Introduction to His Book. |
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