Re: Think your taxes are too high! The nation can't pay for the stuff you wanted us to buy and continue to buy. We could DOUBLE the income tax, putting some people at a 80% rate and still not cover our expenses. And that is assuming the GDP wouldn't suffer with the huge increase in tax. You might want to rethink your strategy.
Re: Think your taxes are too high! I was going to post something similar. I wonder how many of the "raise taxes" crowd volunteer more of their income to the government. I'm guessing it's pretty close to 0%.
Re: Think your taxes are too high! I think we pay too much in taxes and I think we pay for services better and more efficiently obtained elsewhere, if we need many of these "services" at all. If you wish to characterize my protest as "whining", then that's your right; I support your First Amendment right to say stupid things.
Re: Think your taxes are too high! I take it you haven't watched or read the transcript of the 60 mins piece I posted. It not just one party, man. It's not about just blaming the other guys and thinking that will fix the problem. One party didn't create the problem. This is not something that just happened.
Re: Think your taxes are too high! I take it you didn't realize I was responding to Barfo. And I also take it you haven't read much of his posts in this OT forum. He's never seen a government program he didn't want everybody else to pay for. The idea that raising taxes will fix the problem is completely wrong. This is why I didn't take much time reading your transcript. Once the numbers show it doesn't work, what is the point in reading somebody's false opinion? Take a look at the current income tax revenue compared to the deficit. Now double the income tax revenue and see if we still have a deficit. It just plain doesn't work. And Barfo calling people "whiners" for realizing this is pretty lame.
Re: Think your taxes are too high! You should either watch or read it. It's not just about raising taxes to pay off our debt. You're over simplifying it as a way of dismissing something you haven't read or watched. Neither party is proposing any significant cuts to the federal budget. They only seem interested in blaming the other side for all the problems. And yes, I've read and traded posts with you and Barfo many times in the OT thread.
Re: Think your taxes are too high! I read the entire transcript. This mess is the result of both parties. Please show me where I tried to place all blame on the left. However, it has gotten a lot worse during the current administration. The problem is that your posted transcript is still focusing on raising taxes. That absolutely will not fix the problem. It may or may not even help if the GDP takes a hit.
Re: Think your taxes are too high! That's not actually true. For example, I didn't want everybody to pay for the war in Iraq. You seem to not realize that we've been in a recession. As a result of that, tax revenue is temporarily depressed and government spending was temporarily increased. Your comparisons are true this year, but they won't be true in the future as revenue rises and the temporary spending goes away. barfo
Re: Think your taxes are too high! The worst of both worlds. Look at what BB30 is saying. The proposal is to raise taxes at the same time tax revenues are decreased. Meaning whatever engine there is for growing us out of the recession is going to be handcuffed to a huge degree. Grow the economy and the tax revenues grow without touching tax rates.
Re: Think your taxes are too high! Yes, recessions are bad things. Prove it. I think you've got it backwards. The wealthy (and corporations) have lots of cash, but aren't spending it. Why? No demand to justify the investment. If the government takes some of that cash, the government will spend it (on that we surely agree), and such spending will have a, shall we say, stimulating effect on the economy. Yes, that's correct. Now all you have to do is figure out how to grow the economy! [Oh, I know, more tax cuts, right? Worked so well last time...] barfo
Why aren't corporations spending their money? I can think of two reasons. One, Obama might come out and tell everyone "Don't go to Vegas" and kill the businesses there (or anywhere else). Two, Obama might take the business you invested in and give it to a Union.
Not only those two, but Obama might merge Kenya and the USA and declare himself King of Kenya-usa. Sharia law, baby, it's coming to Vegas! barfo
I believe that corporations are soon going to have to start spending. Their share holders are going to demand growth and increased returns. Just sitting on a pile of cash while treading water isn't going to cut it.
Re: Think your taxes are too high! Heck, the way the banking sector bailouts were done, the people on Main Street are being foreclosed on and going into bankruptcy while the big banks are buying up other banks and selling those foreclosures at a discount and destroying any equity people who have been paying their mortgages might have. With all those empty homes out there, there's less demand for all sorts of things, like stuff you buy to do home improvements (no incentive to do it for anyone), the neighborhood restaurants who have fewer customers (people living in the area), and so on. The massive borrowing by the govt. is incentive to hang on to cash reserves. Investing in things where profits are gobbled up by impending high inflation and being on the hook to pay higher expenses down the road isn't very wise. Businesses don't hire when they have a lot of inventory. In typical recoveries, the inventories are depleted and the companies have to hire again to replenish their stock in whatever it is they sell. Like the glut in homes inventory, there's a glut everywhere.
Quality companies always stockpile cash. War chest, some call it. The War Chests are used to buy up other companies, which actually loses jobs. Two companies merged together as one don't need 2x the accountants, 2x the executives, 2x the workers, etc. These types of economies of scale are a big reason why companies merge with others.
