I'm thinking of this in regards to recent proposed 'fixes' of Medicare and Medicaid. Is simply cutting the budget for these programs so that less can be spent a fix for the problem? It seems the ever increasing cost of health care is the problem, and if so, simply spending less tax dollars on providing it to poor and elderly people isn't going to fix that. It will maybe help align the Govt's spending with the last decade's tax cuts, but that's not necessarily what's in the best interests of the nation's citizens.

Now that I think of it, is this current discussion over gutting entitlement programs in order to keep the tax rates low the "starve the beast" strategy bearing fruit? Is that plan to destroy the country's social safety nets actually working?