I've been thinking about this for a while...

Do the most successful entrepreneurs become wealthy and create those jobs we all hear about, because of tax incentives or because they are who they are, their values?

If they were taxed more and earned just half their billions, would they have been less successful?

Would Bill Gates have created fewer jobs if he had paid higher taxes? If his taxes were doubled he'd be worth only $28B now, so did he do it for the money?

My question is, Are we too focused on the impact of taxes and not focused enough on the impact (or lack thereof) of role models and values?

I heard Arne Duncan, Secretary of Education, interviewed a couple of days ago and he spoke passionately and enthusiastically about the 'race to the top', the Bush tax cuts, the unions, taxes, but not once did he mention parents, discipline, cultural values, arguably the most important factors in whether or not we can educate our children.

That is not to say that taxes play no role in our success, of course they do.  But the future of this country will be determined less by money than the breakdown of values like integrity, honesty, honor, education etc.  All the boring stuff.

That Snooky, Snoop Dog, Rap, Crap, Lohan, Lady GaGa, Charlie Sheen and Donald Trump get so much public attention is far more indicative of our real troubles.

Maybe it's just me.