NO on 1

Ok, this is for Alaskans, or maybe not, maybe it is for everybody. here is the scene

Alaska has oil, lots of oil. The constitution says the oil is owned by the citizens of Alaska. 

Producers (BP Conoco, Exxon) "Produce" the oil. Meaning they provide the means by which the oil is extracted and sold to market. 

We (the people) realize our "profit" from the oil by taxing every gallon of oil the producers produce. 

Producing oil in Alaska is unimaginably expensive. More so that just about any place on earth. A lot of this expense comes from the bureaucracy. Somehow, the oil companies muster the patience and persistence to still produce oil even though it seems every government agency is  trying to stop their efforts. 

A couple years back, our legislature revised the method in which the tax on oil is calculated. This revision was vbased on a number of sound economic principals;
  •  "incentives matter"  if you lessen the tax burden on each barrel of oil, you will encurage development of that oil. 
  • The state will make up in volume what it looses in the higher tax rate.
  • Development in our oil and gas industries provides jobs and all the trickle down economics associated with those jobs.
  • This is all a good thing.
As can be expected, the people who produce nothing (social activists, socialists, welfare recipients, academics, etc, took umbrage at the idea that the states revenue stream (the one the do nothings live off)  was seemingly decreased. They refuse to see the new tax structure created a much more equitable environment for the oil producers whereby encouraging billions (as in tens or hundreds) of dollars in new investment. The majority of which is in the form of jobs.

A quick aside.
If I have a job, i have income, I in-turn spend my income on the services i require. The companies i employ to provide those goods and services in turn employ other people and the cycle continues, and grows over time. This is capitalism, and it is the ONLY way to create wealth.

The do nothings, think that the government should extract more money from those who earn it, and re-distribute it to those that do not. This of course sounds all touchy feely but the truth is, the money has to come from someplace and can only come from an individual or corporation that actually produces something of value and sells it (at a profit) 

So, the real issue is this simple
If we make it less profitable for the producers we remove the incentive to produce. jobs go away, and we end up back at square one. 

Two things you need to consider. 
  1. The oil industry in Alaska produces oil in a mannor that is considerably more environmentally responsible than any other place on earth. (partially why it is so expensive to produce oil here) 
  2. If we make it even more expensive, the producers will go someplace else.  (presumably someplace that is easy to do business. 
Summary.
If the do nothings get what they want (more government cheese) those of us that actually believe in working for a living will have less job opportunities. 

VOTE NO ON PROP 1. 
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