Evening star., 1939-06-30
Cites Advantages Of
Federal Employment
Another Small Businessmen
Enters Discussion Of
locul 1uxes

Enters Discussion Of
locul Tuxes
To the Editor OF The Star:
Mr.. Burnstein, writing under date OF
June %, has obviously never been an
independent businessman, small or
otherwise. Compared with the Govern
ment employe at 81 800, he tries to make
the small businessman appear to be an
economic royalist. Let's take down
some figures:
s. B. M. (Small Businessman has net
available income to the amount of 81. 400.
Like his $l,800-a-year neighbor or Gus
toner, he takes a months vacation with
his $1,000 Government friend. The lat
ter receives $50 for the vacation period,
the s. B. M. nothing, 80 we'll have to
debit the other II months $500. Later,
both OF them get the flu and are laid
up for two weeks. Our Government
employe continues to receive his pro
rata salary, SIS, and S. B. M. is out 500.
S. B. M. also pays some taxes on his
gross receipts and for the privilege Of
being in business (plus multitude of
other taxes, and let's say that amounts
to 500 a year. Being a businessman
with an eye to next years earnings he
puts away 5000 (he happens to be 4
short-sighted businessman) against un-
foreseen contingencies In his business.
Having no retirement privileges, he also
puts away 5000 year on an annuity or
some other form Of old-age savings.
Adding up the above items and
S. B. Ms net available income drops to
N,7Oo, without including the hundred
and-one other amounts that we have
ignored. OF course, S. B. M. doesn't have
to take months vacation-and neither
does the Government employe. There's
where the pinch comes in: I'll wager
that, as matter of fact. there are but
precious few s. B. Ms in the 81. 400 group
who take any vacation at all, beyond
sending the wife and kiddies home to
visit the folks for a week or 10 days.
AS for the old man. he has to keep his
nose right on the proverbial grindstone.
He knows very well that II he did take
a month off from 'his business, when it
Is as small as 81, 400 net, or If he kept
Government hours, he couldn't keep his
business active enough to net him even
pocket change
I am one of those persons who doesn't
believe that one part of our population
should enjoy the privileges of Govern
ment at the expense of the other part,
regardless Of the size Of the income OF
recent years there has been developing
philosophy among too many people
that the incompetent the unfortunate,
the indifferent or the Just plain lazy
should ride the comfortable upper decks
OF the ship of state, while the ambitious
and successful, be they small or large,
stay down in the hot bunkers keeping
her going 1t is = mystery where the
notion got started that in Washington
the employees Of the principal industry,
the Federal Government, should enjoy
the dement's Of municipal government
at the expense of the fellow who earns
his living providing the necessities and
comforts Of modern living to the ma jor-
ity group who are employed on a salary
What would be the reaction In the city
OF Detroit if the employees OF the jor
industry, automobiles, were to be de-
clared an exception in every city or
State tax bill?
1t Is surprising that a person who can
command" 81 300 year can be so naive
as to think that S. B. Ms capital of
$4,000 represented net savings from a
big fat income, or that it was given to
him. 1t came from the great source
OF most of S. B. Ms capital: In the
beginning he ran his face" for the
major portion of it after he had accu-
mulated his down payment" by scrimp-
ing and saving from a small salary when
ne, too was an employe with ambition
and nerve enough to step off by him
self-win, lose or draw.
BY the same reasoning that Mr. Burn
stein invites our local small business
man to return home where the picking
Is slim, he, too ought to remember that
1t was undoubtedly the slim picking back
home that brought him here to work
for the Government. Or he might ex-
ercise his constitutional privilege of
screwing up his courage to the point of
borrowing some capital and starting q
small business (they all start small and
most OF them remain so). 1t will be q
long time before he will feel free to
draw $2,400 velvet from his business
after he has finAlly nursed it along
past the breaking-even point. The
chances are 100 to that he'll give up
the struggle and avail himself of his
reinstatement privileges in the Govern
ment-a privilege that is not attached
to the small businessman's enterprise.
June "a. ANOTHER s. B. M.