They Ain't Gonna Fix It
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I was listening to the radio this morning and the conversation was about the coming tax increases here in America. Evidently President Obama wants to raise the tax on dividends from 15% to 20%. The analyst said this would raise 240 billion dollars over the next decade. That is when it hit me: They ain't gonna fix it. Set aside the partisanship for a moment. Set aside your views on taxes (or lack thereof) for a moment. Set aside the whole conservative/liberal thing for a moment. The 240 billion over 10 years is a drop in the bucket. We've been running 1000 billion per year in deficits alone - so that huge, earth shattering tax hike would only cover the deficit for 3 months of out the 120 months total. We're at about 2.5% of the deficit - not even regular spending. We've the same problem on the other side of the aisle. If you completely cut all social spending - if you managed to realize the totality of some conservatives wildest dream - you'd still be running deficits that Obamas wildest tax increases wouldn't cover. In short, I think you could give Obama carte blanche to raise taxes and give the other side carte blanche to cut spending and I still think we'd crater this thing. People keep talking about cutting this or raising that and then they throw around these figures that represent only the smallest fraction of the overall problem. We really have reached the "rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic" phase.
The economy tanking is what made the hole so deep and only the economy growing again will get us out. This is why all the gnashing off teeth over the deceit is silly. We should do whatever it takes to grow the economy (e.g. capital spending) and we can grow out of it.
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Is this a page out of the EU's guidebook on how to run a country? :D
You beat me to the punch (line).
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I think the democracy experiment is teaching us that the mob can be just as oppressive and irresponsible as a monarch. Anyone have any ideas as to what we should try next?
It's called a Republic based on the rule of law. What we have now is a democracy degrading into feudalism. Choose your Duke wisely. But, you are correct, they are not going to fix it. Every nation, and I mean EVERY nation, when they get to this point they just default. I wonder how much money China still has in US treasury notes.
Charlie Gilley You're going to tell me what I want to know, or I'm going to beat you to death in your own house. "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783 “They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” BF, 1759
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wizardzz wrote:
and our allies soil
That's the problem. We spend more money defending our allies than they spend defending themselves...
The United States invariably does the right thing, after having exhausted every other alternative. -Winston Churchill America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence without civilization in between. -Oscar Wilde Wow, even the French showed a little more spine than that before they got their sh*t pushed in.[^] -Colin Mullikin
amen to that
Charlie Gilley You're going to tell me what I want to know, or I'm going to beat you to death in your own house. "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783 “They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” BF, 1759
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Wasn't his biggest argument against Romney, "The math just doesn't add up"? [rant] He's taken us to the fiscal cliff now throw us off and let the revolution begin. [/rant]
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I was listening to the radio this morning and the conversation was about the coming tax increases here in America. Evidently President Obama wants to raise the tax on dividends from 15% to 20%. The analyst said this would raise 240 billion dollars over the next decade. That is when it hit me: They ain't gonna fix it. Set aside the partisanship for a moment. Set aside your views on taxes (or lack thereof) for a moment. Set aside the whole conservative/liberal thing for a moment. The 240 billion over 10 years is a drop in the bucket. We've been running 1000 billion per year in deficits alone - so that huge, earth shattering tax hike would only cover the deficit for 3 months of out the 120 months total. We're at about 2.5% of the deficit - not even regular spending. We've the same problem on the other side of the aisle. If you completely cut all social spending - if you managed to realize the totality of some conservatives wildest dream - you'd still be running deficits that Obamas wildest tax increases wouldn't cover. In short, I think you could give Obama carte blanche to raise taxes and give the other side carte blanche to cut spending and I still think we'd crater this thing. People keep talking about cutting this or raising that and then they throw around these figures that represent only the smallest fraction of the overall problem. We really have reached the "rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic" phase.
Maybe we should start learning to speak chinese?
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I was listening to the radio this morning and the conversation was about the coming tax increases here in America. Evidently President Obama wants to raise the tax on dividends from 15% to 20%. The analyst said this would raise 240 billion dollars over the next decade. That is when it hit me: They ain't gonna fix it. Set aside the partisanship for a moment. Set aside your views on taxes (or lack thereof) for a moment. Set aside the whole conservative/liberal thing for a moment. The 240 billion over 10 years is a drop in the bucket. We've been running 1000 billion per year in deficits alone - so that huge, earth shattering tax hike would only cover the deficit for 3 months of out the 120 months total. We're at about 2.5% of the deficit - not even regular spending. We've the same problem on the other side of the aisle. If you completely cut all social spending - if you managed to realize the totality of some conservatives wildest dream - you'd still be running deficits that Obamas wildest tax increases wouldn't cover. In short, I think you could give Obama carte blanche to raise taxes and give the other side carte blanche to cut spending and I still think we'd crater this thing. People keep talking about cutting this or raising that and then they throw around these figures that represent only the smallest fraction of the overall problem. We really have reached the "rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic" phase.
MehGerbil wrote:
We've been running 1000 billion per year in deficits alone
How much more till it's a Trillion?
Michael Martin Australia "I controlled my laughter and simple said "No,I am very busy,so I can't write any code for you". The moment they heard this all the smiling face turned into a sad looking face and one of them farted. So I had to leave the place as soon as possible." - Mr.Prakash One Fine Saturday. 24/04/2004
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You need to kill the unemployed and then fire nearly all those on a public payroll. Tax all earnings over $500,000 pa at 99% and all the rest at 50%. Corporation Tax to 75% and Sales Tax to 30%. Then, before announcing it, buy shares in a Gun Company.
--------------------------------- I will never again mention that I was the poster of the One Millionth Lounge Post, nor that it was complete drivel. Dalek Dave CCC Link[^]
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It's called a Republic based on the rule of law. What we have now is a democracy degrading into feudalism. Choose your Duke wisely. But, you are correct, they are not going to fix it. Every nation, and I mean EVERY nation, when they get to this point they just default. I wonder how much money China still has in US treasury notes.
Charlie Gilley You're going to tell me what I want to know, or I'm going to beat you to death in your own house. "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783 “They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” BF, 1759
charlieg wrote:
What we have now is a democracy degrading into feudalism.
We've never had a democracy in America except in one of the first colonies that was starving to death until a dictator took over and imposed law. I won't argue that what we have now isn't degrading into feudalism. (Does that count as a double negative?)
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charlieg wrote:
What we have now is a democracy degrading into feudalism.
We've never had a democracy in America except in one of the first colonies that was starving to death until a dictator took over and imposed law. I won't argue that what we have now isn't degrading into feudalism. (Does that count as a double negative?)
;) Until now. Yes, I know we're a Republic. But when the rule of law and the constitution are routinely ignored due to the "will of the people" and making sure everything is fair, legal or not, then we have mob rule. A democracy in other words...
Charlie Gilley You're going to tell me what I want to know, or I'm going to beat you to death in your own house. "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783 “They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” BF, 1759
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;) Until now. Yes, I know we're a Republic. But when the rule of law and the constitution are routinely ignored due to the "will of the people" and making sure everything is fair, legal or not, then we have mob rule. A democracy in other words...
Charlie Gilley You're going to tell me what I want to know, or I'm going to beat you to death in your own house. "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783 “They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” BF, 1759
I can see your point, however I see on video tape a man obliviously whittling, obviously unaware the police officer is addressing him. Both go off camera, no other witnesses see the knife wielding man doing anything threatening. After he is shot and killed, the knife is found folded up. Witnesses DID see him folding up the blade. Police officer gets off with a month suspension. If I had a vote, I'd go with a month in jail (not prison) and a year's suspension from his police duties. (The county should allow him to work in a government facilities janitorial service and freedom to look for another position.) My reps made my decision, I agree with this form of government, so I'll live with it. The police officer hitting the woman didn't seem that threatening, but I also know how that situation could escalate radically, so I'll buy that was per protocol. A man lying face-down, handcuffed behind his back is kicked by a policeman and that's OK. (Didn't look like a kick to me, but it did look like he could have injured the man. I can't think of any valid excuse that should have gotten him off.) Don't get me wrong, I don't want a democracy. I want a police force that will direct traffic when the light signal isn't working. I don't want to vote each month if our current right-of-way laws are fair and should be continued. If I went to my neighbors, convinced them all the officer should be strung up, we find him, overpower his friends, and actually do that, the majority ruled so we shouldn't be penalized for that. I don't think so. We actually do have quite a bit of democratic power, enough to dissolve the republic, we just don't have the consensus and resolve to use it. (I for one, don't want that.) Also, mob rule isn't democratic, there is an implied threat made when a mob is formed to go along, or else. It's really impressive watching Jimmy Stuart stand in front of people with arms spread wide and get the people who would have charged past him to listen to reason. It's an unbelievable fairy tale that they actually stop and listen.
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I agree with you here. $240bn? We went through 10% of that the day after Thanksgiving. http://rt.com/usa/news/day-thanksgiving-debt-us-741/[^] From my understanding, isn't a disproportionate amount of the budget dedicate to defense spending? Wouldn't pulling out of countries that only Israel wants us in save quite a bit?
I think we should pull out of Europe and Japan first. We've been there lots longer...
"People who bite the hand that feeds them usually lick the boot that kicks them." Eric Hoffer "The failure mode of 'clever' is 'asshole'" John Scalzi "Only buzzards feed on their friends" Patrick Dorinson