Most companies use signs to sell something.

CNC Industries founder Steve Deam Sr. hopes his will persuade people not to buy something - no matter how attractive politicians make the product seem.

“The federal stimulus package just didn't sit well with me, but the final straw was when I heard they were spending hundreds of thousands of dollars putting up signs on roads saying, ‘Your stimulus dollars at work,'” So about three weeks ago, Deam erected a sign in front of his machine shop at 3810 Fourier Drive declaring CNC's independence from the latest round of federal largesse - and said he's been getting congratulated for it ever since.

“Even my banker said it sends a great message,” Deam said of the sign, which reads, “100% hard-working People here/ZERO Stimulus dollars at work here!”

Indeed it does send a great message. Which got me to thinking, which is always dangerous: What if every individual and business in America could determine, then had to disclose, whether they are net givers or takers of government funds?

Deam was mostly just blowing off steam that, so far as he can tell, little of the more than $700 billion in stimulus money has been directed at small businesses, which, according to the Small Business Administration, account for half of America's private-sector jobs. “I didn't expect any of that money, or even want it. But I wanted to make a statement that small business has been overlooked,” Deam said, acknowledging that he would have to consider accepting stimulus cash if it were available, even though he “probably wouldn't want the strings that would come with it.”

Even so, Deam's public disdain for government handouts and praise for the work ethic of his employees reflects a sentiment that was once common in this country, and must become so again, if freedom and prosperity are to be assured for future generations. As he said, “We'll survive this recession the same way we have in the past: by being lean and efficient and seeking additional customers.”

That wisdom was hard-earned. Named one of Inc. magazine's fastest-growing privately held companies less than a year ago, the company has seen its 2008 sales of $9.5 million and 67-member work force cut in half as the recession hit the aerospace and defense industries that account for most of CNC's business. Nor has Deam yet seen signs of a recovery, despite recent optimistic reports.

“If they really want to help all businesses, they would just offer a ‘tax holiday.' But it's all politics,” he said.

Precisely.

A “holiday” from taxes would have injected cash into the economy far more quickly and universally than the stimulus package - only a fraction of which has yet been spent. But politicians don't get bridges and buildings named after them by allowing people to keep more of their own money. Their longevity is too often tied to their willingness to confiscate money from one group and give it to another supposedly more “deserving” group who will spend it - and vote - in politically advantageous ways.

Alexis de Tocqueville saw it coming more than 150 years ago. Following a visit to America in the 1830s, the French historian and political observer wrote, “The American republic will endure until the day Congress discovers that it can bribe the public with the public's money.”


Is that day here? Recent opposition to the federalization of health care offers reason for hope, but the national debt - about $12 trillion and growing fast - indicates otherwise. So does the hunger for government programs but low taxes (at least for themselves) even among people who consider themselves conservatives. I wonder: How many Americans would gladly wear an “I consume more government than I pay for” sign in exchange for a comfortable life?

As Americans, we have an obligation to care for those truly in need. Sometimes - but not always - government is best-equipped to provide that care. But the obligation to help should never be allowed to mutate into the right to demand physical comfort - or an “entitlement,” in today's bureaucratic vocabulary. Such a view cannot but help turn compassion on its head, fostering mutual resentment where concern and gratitude should dwell.

That's a lot to read into a simple machine-shop sign, I know. But, in a way, Deam was simply adding a contemporary twist to another timeless de Tocqueville sentiment Americans would do well to remember:

“Democracy and socialism have nothing in common but one word: equality. But notice the difference: While democracy seeks equality in liberty. Socialism seeks equality in restraint and servitude.”