The NEA was created in 1965. Can anyone name a genre of art that has been better post-1965 than pre-1965?
I am a playwright myself on the side. For my last produced play, I put in at least a thousand hours of work between the writing and the production details. In the end, I ended up making about $100 profit. But it’s a labor of love, and I was delighted to earn it honestly and without any NEA money. Why should anyone be forced to support my hobby? The very idea is un-American.
If you like my plays, come see them and tell your friends and I’ll be glad to take your money. If you don’t, don’t see them and I’ll have to write better plays or accept that I will be working for free. But nobody is forcing me to write, and nobody should force anyone to work and pay taxes on my behalf.
An earlier scandal with the NEA, The Administration was using the funds to promote the Obama agenda through art. My guess this is the reason for an increase in funding.