Text 3462, 111 rader
Skriven 2006-07-07 13:30:00 av Robert E Starr JR (3935.babylon5)
Ärende: Re: Atheists: America's m
=================================
* * * This message was from Dennis \(Icarus\) to rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.m * *
*
         * * * and has been forwarded to you by Lord Time * * *         
            -----------------------------------------------             

@MSGID: <b1acc$44ad0b20$18d64cf6$8668@KNOLOGY.NET>
@REPLY: <cemfa2pl698vnkdpfkl6hsjrm4qedts632@4ax.com>

"Josh Hill" <usereplyto@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:jcroa2l5k1uebji9ttgoksu63or9k358u2@4ax.com...
> On Tue, 4 Jul 2006 20:46:07 -0500, "Dennis \(Icarus\)"
> <ala_dir_diver@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> >
<snip>
> >
> >Hmm....if a rate goes from 33 to 28, applies to all, then its across the
> >board.
> >Basic math
>
> Excep that as I pointed out below, it isn't basic math. What actually
> happens is a good deal more complex.

Apparently, all you point out below is that a 5% reduction on an income of,
say 200,000 is greater than a 5% reduction on, say 80,000.

>
> >> In fact, even if most of the money and benefits hadn't gone directly
> >> to the rich, which is to say each rich taxpayer saved a /lot/ more
> >> money on his tax bill than each middle class taxpayer, the actual
> >> scenario was more like the following:
> >
> >Becuase....as I've pointed out, they pay more.
>
> Doesn't address what I said below, which is that this is /not/ an
> across the board tax cut -- it's one that a) gives more tax relief to
> the rich b) gives a disproportionate amount of the tax cuts to the
> rich and c) very likely /increases/ the total tax burden as a
> percentage of income on the poor and middle class.

Well, you can believe that if y'like.

> >
> >Guesstimates - ex: the Income tax was predicted to never grow to what its
> >become,
> >nor Social Security, nor Medicate, not even the pharmaceutical coverage.
>
> That last is because the Bush Administration misrepresented it.

:-) Of course - its all Bush's fault. :-)

>
> >> So I'd say more for a shift in the tax burden back from the poor and
> >> middle class in the direction of the rich. That would result in a
> >> middle class tax cut if spending were kept at current levels and we
> >> didn't do anything about the deficit, but since I think we have to
> >> address the deficit it would more likely result in some degree of tax
> >> restoration for the rich and little change in the middle class tax
> >> burden.
> >>
> >> >> wealthiest Americans has increased by 210% in the last 30 years or
so,
> >> >> while the after-tax income of everyone else has stayed static or
gone
> >> >> down. The obvious solution here is to spread the wealth a bit by
> >> >
> >> >The money goes to the governemnt, where there's a good bit of wasteful
> >> >spending, agreed?
> >> >How much do you think would go to "everyone else"?
> >> >How much would wind upbeing lost, since income that could be used to
grow
> >a
> >> >business, now goes to the govt?
> >>
> >> I don't think one can answer those questions. But I don't think
> >> they're central. The government should spend what it should spend
> >
> >They're central if you're claiming to "spread the wealth".
>
> That's a vague term, which could apply to everything from $1 to

Well, it is your term.

> socialism. So I don't think one can answer without examining the
> entire economic picture, and the practical one: is this deficit
> harmful or beneficial given current economic circumstances, are these
> programs necessary or beneficial or wasteful from the perspective of
> the economy and the national good, how does this tax increase or
> decrease affect personal incentive, how does it affect our
> competitiveness abroad, does the economy need more investment (reduce
> capital gains and taxes on the rich) or demand (reduce taxes for
> working people), how are people doing and how will this affect their
> well-being (e.g., rich 210% richer after taxes, everyone else the same
> over 30 years, lost of children growing up in poverty), etc. You just

You keep bringing up these numbers - where do they come from?

> can't oversimplify it without making the country a victim of
> sound-bititis, which is exactly what's happened -- economic policy is
> being decided on the basis of what appeals to the voters in a 5-second
> bite ("Read my lips, no more taxes") rather than what's good for the
> country.
>

Dennis


.
                                                           
--- SBBSecho 2.11-Win32
 * Origin: Time Warp of the Future BBS - Home of League 10 (1:14/400)