Taxation
It does not take a trained economist to understand that the leading cause of declining purchasing power is steeped in the additional taxes applied. This process is applied to nearly every item of value. From the rent we pay, to the food we eat, the bitter pill of taxes on goods is the bitterness we all feel.
“But Chris, without taxes, where we we fund the items that people rely upon?”
That is a great question, which deserves an answer. The items we provide to the less fortunate should be addressed with the pertinent understanding of providing the most care, at he lowest cost. Any time we pool the money together to provide assistance to those in need, we only meet half the metric. Generally speaking, every government provided subsidy or assistance costs roughly three times the amount needed to provide the same remedy.
My solution to this item would be to use the tax-incentivized charities to provide these options for those in need at an affordable cost for all. I strongly support and encourage altruism. I feel that giving is one of the best things we can do for our communities. I DO NOT feel that government has a function to insure that we are good people.
The certainty of death and taxes is a great summation, as they are equally desirable on the face.
“Without taxes, how will we pay for things for the government to provide?“
As mentioned, the government gets involved in issues and items it has zero business performing – at roughly three times the cost.
Sure, we all want safe streets and we don’t want people to starve. To rely on the government to provide these services just does not make sense. We, as a people, have a moral obligation to take care of one another, but there are better avenues to utilize outside of the government to address these items. If we were to privatize many of the food banks and street maintenance of what we receive today, we would save essentially 2/3 of the cost of these items. Currently, we pay officials to deliberate what is needed, then we pay them to solicit bids, then we add additional costs for overruns. The only incentive for these contracts is to complete the task at a certain standard with an open completion schedule.
Want to learn more about the property tax issues? You should take an in-depth look at my friend Nico Tsatsoulis at his website: https://nicotheassessor.com/
Government Payroll
If you were to ask just about any government office holder, they would claim they are underpaid. I understand that there is a lot of work and fairly uncomfortable parts of holding office, but I also feel that the salaries awarded to these positions far exceed the work product.
“But Chris, we should pay these positions to yield the highest quality of work.”
In a way, you’re right. In a way you are wrong. The salary is decided upon and is guaranteed, regardless of performance. For a lack of a better way of explaining this, a government position does not take a person away from performing other duties. This is generally a part-time position, affording time for the office holder to earn money elsewhere simultaneously. The pay scale for office holders should be calculated on their performance and associated with the number of constituents they represent. What is worse, is the built in pensions. Why should government rely on taxpayers for a retirement built on a cost of living they created?
Education
I firmly believe that a quality education is the bedrock of creating a just and prosperous future for ourselves, our economy and for future generations. That being said, we need a better system,
“But Chris, we need to pay a fair wage for those who dedicate their lives to teaching!”
You’re absolutely right. I could not agree more! I believe we, as a community need to provide options for each family to utilize, at their discretion, the best method for teaching. This includes school choice, homeschooling and even through the means of the public sector. Currently, property taxes in Cook County, specifically in Chicago are awarded to the Chicago Public Schools system, this portion is nearly 60% of the property taxes.
I propose that this system be restructured to absolve the highly burdensome debts created by a pension system and poor spending priorities. If a family decides to elect a private school for their education of their family, they should be resolved to not pay for the public school system, the same should go for the homeschooling. This would offset the costs inferred to families who cannot afford to send their families to filing schools who do not measure effectiveness with student success. Further, this would force the hand of the public schools to streamline their models to be more cost-efficient.
Public Safety
This topic is near and dear to my heart, as I currently serve as Chicago’s 14th Police District Council Chair.
“Hey Chris, Police are beating people and I don’t feel safe!”
Well, I will not make a blanket statement on the behaviors of individuals. I can say, with confidence, that the professionalism of the police is at an all time high. I have lengthy discussions and meetings with police leadership and I can assure you that there is a method in which the bad apples are removed from duty. In fact, anyone who proposes to abolish the police, has yet to imagine just how dangerous the world is. I believe that people are inherently good. I also believe that there are people in the world who would take advantage of a system without consequences – that is just attributed to being a realist and understanding human nature.
My aim is to provide public safety with every available tool necessary to perform their duties. If members of police forces fail with every amenity, then it makes clear that they are not suitable for that position and should be removed.
Problematic individuals who are released from one policing agency will carry a mark on their records of public service and will hamper their ability to continue their behavior in neighboring communities.
Speaking on Public Safety, my friend Brad Sandefur is also running for Cook County Sheriff. Take a look into his outlook here
Completed: October 13, 2025