There are so many people today who no longer believe that one person can make a difference. They are wrong. A story proves my point.

In 1987, a guy by the name of Douglas Bruce - an ordinary guy, a citizen and a former prosecutor from California gave up the practice of law, moved to Colorado, and embarked on what ended up being a personal quest to control government growth.

As a private citizen, he wrote and introduced the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights (TABOR) to Colorado voters. It took 90 days to get TABOR on the ballot in Colorado Springs where it passed in 1991. In statewide elections, Bruce got TABOR on the ballot and it lost in 1988 and 1990. It finally passed in 1992. The third time’s the charm, as the saying goes. The people spoke and TABOR amended Article X of the Colorado Constitution.

Bruce took some pretty hard hits while putting major control of taxation into the hands of the people. I used to wonder if he was going to live through it. You cannot imagine the daily verbal scourging Douglas Bruce suffered at the hands of politicians and the mainstream media.

What is TABOR? Why is this guy special? I guess he's special to me because he represents what any one of us could be or could do – if we put our minds and our backs to it.

TABOR lets citizens vote on tax increases. In Colorado - because of TABOR - voters determine the level of government service on which they want to spend tax dollars. Since tax revenues are more limited, government must spend within its means. Prior to TABOR, Colorado could increase mill levies and state taxes at their discretion. Thanks to Bruce, TABOR is "tightly written," which prevents government from counteracting its intent.

In other words, TABOR makes government more accountable, forcing discipline over budget and tax practices. It makes government more efficient and it controls growth.

Only with the approval of the people can State programs and activities be expanded. With periodic regularity, the Colorado government requests voters to give up (usually permanently) their spending limit protection and their right to vote on future excess revenue. It is called "de-Brucing" TABOR.
The people say "yes" or they say "no."

So what did TABOR accomplish? What's the Before and After story?

Changes in Colorado’s Prosperity Rankings after TABOR

                               Rank Among the States*

Economic Indicator                    1980-1992          1993-2006
Population Growth                            13                           3
Per Capita Income                             18                           9
Per Capita Income Growth               34                          6
Economic Growth                               26                          3
Per Capita Income                             12                           8
*Chart courtesy of Colorado Independence Institute

The politicians were losing their perceived power base. They were terrified. They said some pretty ridiculous things - about Douglas Bruce and about TABOR.

Pope John Paul II visited Denver for World Youth Day in August 1993 (after TABOR was approved by voters in 1992). The politicians threatened that TABOR would prevent the police from providing security for him. There would not be sufficient funding for schools, they said. The Sheriffs would have to release prisoners from county lock-ups due to a lack of funds, they said. We taxpayers are used to it, these days: The fear tactic.

As Douglas Bruce has stated, "They will say anything." They did. A lot of what was said was about him – and it wasn’t good.

One man can make a difference in America's vast sea of professional bureaucrats, lobbyists, and politicians. All you have to do is care enough to ride against the whirlwind of political power.

We've all heard the threats of what will happen if we don't do as they ask... the fear they throw at us constantly. It always starts with some dire consequence to “the children…”

We've had a constant stream of dire predictions since September 2008 when then Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson intimidated members of the House and Senate into passing TARP. If it wasn't passed, the economy would fail! He needed $750 billion NOW! Without it, the banks would fail. America would fail!

Today no one can trace what happened to the money (and Paulson has admitted the $750 billion was just a guess).

We must learn that sometimes people are dumb - Hank Paulson, Ben Bernanke, or Timothy Geithner (the New York Fed head knew what was happening on Wall Street; it's in the job description) may look dumb, but they are very shrewd. If they cannot see a tidal wave coming in the arena they are paid to oversee, why do we think they are capable of solving the resultant flood of problems caused by it?

There are people - like Douglas Bruce - telling us what is to come… warning us and trying to do something about it. They work in impenetrable darkness… the darkness of not being able to see how what they do will impact the world. They do what they do because it is right.

Are we listening? Who is part of the Masses rather than the Remnant? Do we complain that it is impossible to change things?

Or, do we light a candle like Douglas Bruce did?

© 2009 Marilyn M. Barnewall - All Rights Reserved