Science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke once said, "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." Similarly, it could be said that for liberals, how the real world works is indistinguishable from magic.

They want “free” birth control, health care, college, “Cash for Clunkers,” free housing for the poor and paid time off for women who are having a child. They want welfare with no preconditions for anyone who wants it, a $15 minimum wage and they want to open our borders to anyone who wants to come here illegally, have a child and live off the American people for the next 18 years.

Unfortunately, as Thomas Sowell has often said, “There are no solutions; there are only trade-offs.” Put another way, giving away “free” stuff may seem appealing, but it often has terrible consequences.

First and foremost among them, if you give too much away, you can go bankrupt. It’s not the least bit controversial to say that even with our current level of spending, we’re on pace to become Greece. You don’t have to take my word for it because even a diehard liberal socialist like Bernie Sanders admits that we can’t keep piling on debt.

"Everyone agrees that over the long-term we have got to reduce the record-breaking $13.7 trillion national debt and unsustainable federal deficit."

Incidentally, our record-breaking debt is now up to almost $18.4 trillion and Bernie Sanders is proposing another $18 trillion in spending over the next decade on NEW programs. That’s in addition to the deficit spending we’re already doing, all of which is theoretical because at some point in the next decade or two, no one will be willing to loan us any more money and our economy will splatter like a bug on a windshield.

At that point, your kids will be wearing potato sacks, you’ll be bartering your family heirlooms for fuel and the grandparents will be eating their shoe leather after the Social Security and Medicare checks stop coming.

Is that an exaggeration? Maybe, but MAYBE NOT.

That may not be fun to think about, sort of like a crack addict imagining her bright future as a rundown prostitute who runs scams to make cash when Bill Clinton and Anthony Weiner aren’t in town paying the bills, but it’s where we’re headed.

Oh, but we don’t have to worry about that because “the rich” and “corporations” will pay for everything, right?

Except they won’t. They’ll pay for lobbyists who’ll work to put in loopholes, they’ll stop working if necessary or they’ll just leave the country. Go ahead and call them unpatriotic, shake your fist and complain, but that’s just how the world works. That’s a big part of the reason why tax increases inevitably end up hammering middle class Americans. They don’t have money for lobbyists, they can’t afford to stop working and they don’t have enough money to flee the country.

Moreover, when rich people and corporations do get hit with taxes, they’re not stupid -- they pass those costs on at every opportunity. So, your meal costs more? Sorry, had to pay for the minimum wage. Your medical costs have gone through the roof? Sorry, but we had to implement Obamacare. Gas costs more? Education? Heating your home? Sorry, sorry, sorry – somebody needed some free stuff and that money had to come from somewhere!

Meanwhile, because the government is racking up new debt the way Kim Kardashian racks up selfies, the Federal Reserve is printing money non-stop. That means average Americans are getting hit on both ends. They pay more to cover the costs government imposes on businesses while inflation makes every paycheck worth less – that is, if they keep their jobs at all.

After all, what was it that Hillary Clinton said about businesses going under because they couldn’t afford government-mandated health care costs? Oh, yes!

“I can’t worry about every undercapitalized business.”

That’s the attitude.

You lose your job because the company you work for can’t make it with a $15 minimum wage, because of Obamacare costs, or if the company goes overseas because we already have the highest corporate tax rate in the free world – well, that’s too bad! Don’t worry about it though, here’s some “free” stuff for you. Sure, you’ll have to downsize your lifestyle, swallow your pride and cut back on your dreams, but at least it’s “free,” right?

We don’t need more “free” stuff in America; we need more opportunity! We also need to start putting the interests of the people who work hard, play by the rules and pay their taxes ahead of illegal aliens, refugees and the people who want something for “free.”

As the late, great Robert Heinlein said, “There's no such thing as a free lunch.” When someone starts promising you one, smart people put their hands over their wallets and start looking for the catch.