Life caps

Look, there's nothing wrong with tax caps, as long as they work. But it sounds like the one in Colorado has outlived its welcome:

...the Bell Policy Center in Denver, an opponent of the law, found sharp reductions in immunizations, mental health services and inspections of day care centers, along with an increase in substandard roads and uninsured children. The center also blamed the cap for reducing access to higher education. "We're taking away the opportunity for people to better their lives," said Wade Buchanan, the center's president.

Here's the thing. Say you are on a budget that grows only with inflation. Everything is tight, but you manage to spend all your money on food, clothes, utilites, etc, with nothing left over. How do you spend money upgrading things once they wear out? For example, if you don't own a computer in this house, how would you ever afford one? What about internet access? You couldn't without cutting funding for clothes for your children. Or taking food from their mouth.

Now you could argue that the house doesn't really need a computer, or access to the internet, but that's one perk that hundreds of other houses have that you do not. Their children can learn at home on line while yours must rely on encyclopedias you inherented ten years ago. So they fall behind in school.

The point is, without allowing for new investment and capital, there is very little room for improvement in your quality of life.