In times of budget shortfalls, people usually make do with less. When money gets tight, people will postpone their vacations, put off buying that new car, or start packing their lunch to make ends meet. But not the government.

When the government faces economic shortfalls, they simply use the threat of lethal force to take more of the citizens money. Such is the case in suburban Loudoun County (Virginia).

The Loudoun County Board of Supervisors, struggling with a sudden downturn in the housing market and a population that grows ever larger, approved a 19 percent increase in the property tax rate yesterday that will send the average bill soaring by more than $300 this year.

Driven by a new Democratic majority, the board narrowly approved a $1 billion spending plan that requires an 18-cent increase in the tax rate to $1.14 for each $100 of assessed value. The plan is expected to result in a 6.5 percent increase in the average homeowner's tax bill.

Dipping into the $108 million "rainy day fund" to cover the $25 million shortfall was quickly dismissed as an option. Apparently it never rains on the government either.

To be fair to Democrats, even the board's two Republicans were pushing for "a more modest increase". Because in today's poltical world even largesse is bipartisan. Notice that cutting spending on social programs and other vote-buying schemes was never even considered.