Taxing the rich… for Tinker Bell?!
President Obama keeps proposing increased taxes on successful people. However, will those taxes go to constitutional activities or to propaganda for children?
Our nation’s problems can’t be fixed by throwing pixie dust on them or waving a magic wand. However, the Energy Department thinks they can. A taxpayer-funded public information campaign on billboards and the internet features Tinker Bell advertising energy conservation to children.
The Department of Energy’s Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy website for children features Tinker Bell and other games, including “Energy Elf” where kids can stop the “Power Gobblin” from wasting energy. On the government’s “Energy Star” website, kids can search among the truffula trees for energy-efficient appliances that the Lorax endorses, and learn one-sided global warming arguments.
Wasteful spending on propaganda for children must stop. We’re racking up mounds of debt that the same children will have to pay. Kids already owe the government more than $50,000 as soon as the are born.
When did the government grow so much that it decided to advertise to children? Childrens’ games are found on many government websites. When you visit kids.gov, you can find a list of the myriad federal government websites that feature childrens’ sections. For example, kids can use the Peace Corps Challenge, take the Census for Kids Memory Test, play “Save Perry’s Pennies” at the Treasury website, and play “Where in the World is the Secretary of State.”
Another Energy Department website and ad campaign is called “Lose Your Excuse.” This website features games, designs, and an “easy energy action” plan that encourages children to ask their parents to buy Energy Star appliances, purchase programmable digital thermostats, and make home improvements to save energy. It’s commercials show a kid giving an excuse for not having energy-efficient light bulbs and blaming it on NBA player Baron Davis.
The Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) has many public service messages. One of the most unusual features a 28 minute YouTube video called “The Food Label and You.” The last few minutes feature a red, talking food label quizzing an “ordinary, everyday, average” person on the features of food labeling. The video is “Are You Smarter than a Food Label?”
Other government propaganda shows the trend of wasteful spending. When “No Child Left Behind” was passed, it had a logo and marketing campaign. It even had a “museum” in front of the Department of Education building in Washington, D.C. No legislation should have a logo.
In an era of budget deficits, huge national debt, and impending crisis, Congress should stop sending propaganda to the same children it is burdening with debt. One place to start cutting is Tinker Bell and other advertising that appeals to children. Don’t tax the rich for Tinker Bell.