the phrase "tax the rich" is a catchy campaign slogan but doesn't do much for us down in the trenches. Ending stupid spending and cutting taxes would be more beneficial to most of us
perfect "foxed news" non-issue... reinforces the harmless nature of tax breaks for the rich... stupid spending? how about hundreds of millions per day for wars we lose? how 'bout a billion per day for research and development of weapons that will never become reality... how about the $100 mil yearly for the federal helium program... you remember helium...used in blimps... program started in 1929... just never ended...so stupid the feds decided to classify the specifics of info... rumors that an equally stupid ex-prez now owns the contract. so... not only is this post deceptive math, it is magic math... and the whole thing is designed to protect the long-running sweet tax deal for the rich... course... they did have to make some carefully placed payments to oil-skinned scummies in CONgress.
What income group pays the most federal income taxes today?
The latest data show that a big portion of the federal income tax burden is shouldered by a small group of the very richest Americans. The wealthiest 1 percent of the population earn 19 percent of the income but pay 37 percent of the income tax. The top 10 percent pay 68 percent of the tab. Meanwhile, the bottom 50 percent—those below the median income level—now earn 13 percent of the income but pay just 3 percent of the taxes. These are proportions of the income tax alone and don’t include payroll taxes for Social Security and Medicare.
But didn’t the Bush tax cuts favor the rich?
The New York Times reported recently that the average family in America with an income of $10 million or more received a half-million-dollar tax cut, while the middle class got crumbs (less than $100 shaved off their tax bill). If we examine the taxes paid in a static world—that is, if we assume that there was no change in behavior and economic performance as a result of the tax code—then these numbers are meaningful. Most of the tax cuts went to the super wealthy.
But Americans did respond to the tax cuts. There was more investment, more hiring by businesses, and a stronger stock market. When we compare the taxes paid under the old system with those paid after the Bush tax cuts, the rich are now actually paying a higher proportion of income taxes. The latest IRS data show an increase of more than $100 billion in tax payments from the wealthy by 2005 alone. The number of tax filers who claimed taxable income of more than $1 million increased from approximately 180,000 in 2003 to over 300,000 in 2005. The total taxes paid by these millionaire households rose by about 80 percent in two years, from $132 billion to $236 billion.
Here are some numbers you can read and base your own opinion off that.
What income group pays the most federal income taxes today?
The latest data show that a big portion of the federal income tax burden is shouldered by a small group of the very richest Americans. The wealthiest 1 percent of the population earn 19 percent of the income but pay 37 percent of the income tax. The top 10 percent pay 68 percent of the tab. Meanwhile, the bottom 50 percent—those below the median income level—now earn 13 percent of the income but pay just 3 percent of the taxes. These are proportions of the income tax alone and don’t include payroll taxes for Social Security and Medicare.
But didn’t the Bush tax cuts favor the rich?
The New York Times reported recently that the average family in America with an income of $10 million or more received a half-million-dollar tax cut, while the middle class got crumbs (less than $100 shaved off their tax bill). If we examine the taxes paid in a static world—that is, if we assume that there was no change in behavior and economic performance as a result of the tax code—then these numbers are meaningful. Most of the tax cuts went to the super wealthy.
But Americans did respond to the tax cuts. There was more investment, more hiring by businesses, and a stronger stock market. When we compare the taxes paid under the old system with those paid after the Bush tax cuts, the rich are now actually paying a higher proportion of income taxes. The latest IRS data show an increase of more than $100 billion in tax payments from the wealthy by 2005 alone. The number of tax filers who claimed taxable income of more than $1 million increased from approximately 180,000 in 2003 to over 300,000 in 2005. The total taxes paid by these millionaire households rose by about 80 percent in two years, from $132 billion to $236 billion.
It would be nice if people would quote their sources for their info instead of just throwing out one sided talking points. If you are informed about facts then they should be shared. From either side.
income stats can usually be found on the census website. either they don't care about disparities or they are not following orders. one of their most telling charts is income level since 1900. if you check it out, make sure you keep in mind that family incomes today are the result of numerous jobs as opposed to one prior to 1960.
i'm sure the average amelikan wishes he had to pay 100k in taxes.
not only did bush forgive the rich their taxes (wanted to make the cuts PERMANENT) but... remember the "rebates"?
DeCon the estate tax is unamerican! Double taxation is wrong, plain and simple. Over and over Congress continues to invent ways to continue to tax us to support bloated bureaucracies and runaway government spending. The estate tax is one of those clever inventions.
Obviously you have decided that it is American to tax people who have acquired wealth and paid taxes throughout their lifetimes on the income and then must pay an additional 35% when they pass on. Unbelieveable.
It doesn't affect many people, right? Take a farmer who passes away and has assets exceeding $5,000,000 in land, cash, buildings, investments, equipment and other capital. In today's age a decent size farm can easily exceed the exemption limit. Without an estate plan the farmer's heirs often need to borrow money or liquidate the assets in order to pay the taxes the parent worked a lifetime to build. It happens all the time.
It is double taxation and is a ridiculous extension of class warfare if there ever was one.
the rich could tell you that only those too dumb or cheap to get a good tax lawyer pay taxes. but... they never give out advice on money. they don't spend their money... they spend YOUR money. YOU pay the taxes, thank you.
Johnson you strike me as an incredibly juvenile, resentful and bitter individual!
You offer little to the conversation and in most cases, simply repel those who wish to provide meaningful conversation to interesting posts.
However, you are entitled to your venomous and often spurious opinions thanks to the freedoms this great country we live in provides to you guaranteed by our Constitution.
It is our right to discount your insanity by seeking to read and comment elsewhere.
you could strike me in many ways, perhaps some of them less than flattering... but that would not be germane to anything addressed here.
by the by the rights you refer to are inalienable... not guaranteed... the guarantee comes via "the people"... how's your patriot act doing as "the people" slept through it all while you were lied to again... you can now be stopped for no reason... raided with no warrant... phone tapped... mail opened...(actually since the fifties... see cia SHAMROCK program) bank account reviewed... arrested and disappeared on rumor. you might be fine with that... the soviets were.
i come by the complaints posted here fairly honestly... i have no idea what lies you experienced from childhood and on the rise through school, church and community. i was told that i was blessed to live in the greatest christian nation on the planet... with limitless possibilities and a virtual guaranteed decent and rich life...more especially if i SERVED.
so i did. i wore an insignia on my beret back in 69 that read "de oppresso libre" or "to free the oppressed". as a medic i was expected to contribute to the welfare of a village and its people... on patrol we were expected to murder anyone who refused to cooperate with our shocking agenda whether or not they were from the very same village. the greatest christian nation on the planet expected us to be fine with war crimes (as it does today) if not crimes against humanity...remember 12 yo kim phuc running naked and on fire down a dirt road in name? there was no military gain to be had on that napalm sortie and everybody knew it.
i was pretty clear about the realities of this nation versus the star spangled banner and old glory by the time i hit college. i lucked out with a scholarship (actually family legacy) to attend the most expensive college in the country. as white trash in the midst of trust fund babies who would soon populate the board rooms of corporations already dictating our lives, i was sensitive to the crass attitudes and behavior toward less grand folks.
let's review... korea...a lie...lost nam...a lie...lost iraq...a lie...lost afghanistan...a lie... losing libya...a lie...would lose the EXACT course of the ussr... what? are we really retarded?
i might have missed your expansive contributions to the conversation... other than the pro forma mutual admiration society obligations... you might be kind enough to explain the "meaningful" in the "interesting posts"... you do have the right to ignore the sheer insanity of the greatest christian nation on the planet... and just play house.
if you are interested in facts... 20 yr vet of the cia and professor emeritus in international relations of u cal, chalmers johnson tells a detailed tale. but you fun the risk of seeing through the pap and the phony of fox news and the flea, er, tea party.
You Mr. Johnson have no idea who I am or what I have done. I appreciate the view of your life, but I didn't ask for your resume.
I thank you for your service to our great nation, but I will not apologize for your life or the consequences of your actions.
You still live in the freest of nations in this menacing world and excercise your right to freedom speech which is inalienable, but it is endowed by our creator, Johnson. Yes, we the people grant authority to the government, consent of the governed?
We are all entitled to our own opinion of this great nation, I choose to see it in a glass half full point of view, you the opposite, apparently.
You think you have been lied to, fine. The tragedy of the human experience is that we think beyond instinct and therefore have the ability to become paranoid. I see lies and propaganda, sure, but I don't see black helicopters. Perhaps I live a naive existence in your opinion because I have not seen the things you write of, but I have seen things that make me believe in good and evil and it does exist. For me I would rather our government do the things it needs to do to protect us and forget the expensive frills the enlightended nations of Europe dreamed up as inalienable rights. If we do this, we could cut the budget and not need to tax the rich, whatever that means.
So yes, Johnson we are off topic and I will end it with you with this little tidbit. Chalmers Johnson was a cold war political scientist who saw the post coldwar world in a way where America is no longer necessary. I disagree. His blowback theory is an interesting take on American Foreign Policy and in many ways he's right; however, his view of America as an hegemonic imperialisitic empire hellbent on world domination is obsurd and frankly his only theme. Let's not forget how we got here.
You see Dr. Johnson as a hero and probably see the same in Daniel Ellsberg or perhaps even Julian Assange. I see people who find America to be a cancer and deny American exceptionalism, simple as that.
Intelligent people can disagree Johnson, you and I will have to, but please for the sake of those of us who don't know the secrets you know and like to live our lives believing in the American Fairy Tale, dispense with the melodramatic pity party.
You Mr. Johnson have no idea who I am or what I have done. I appreciate the view of your life, but I didn't ask for your resume.
I thank you for your service to our great nation, but I will not apologize for your life or the consequences of your actions.
You still live in the freest of nations in this menacing world and excercise your right to freedom speech which is inalienable, but it is endowed by our creator, Johnson. Yes, we the people grant authority to the government, consent of the governed?
We are all entitled to our own opinion of this great nation, I choose to see it in a glass half full point of view, you the opposite, apparently.
You think you have been lied to, fine. The tragedy of the human experience is that we think beyond instinct and therefore have the ability to become paranoid. I see lies and propaganda, sure, but I don't see black helicopters. Perhaps I live a naive existence in your opinion because I have not seen the things you write of, but I have seen things that make me believe in good and evil and it does exist. For me I would rather our government do the things it needs to do to protect us and forget the expensive frills the enlightended nations of Europe dreamed up as inalienable rights. If we do this, we could cut the budget and not need to tax the rich, whatever that means.
So yes, Johnson we are off topic and I will end it with you with this little tidbit. Chalmers Johnson was a cold war political scientist who saw the post coldwar world in a way where America is no longer necessary. I disagree. His blowback theory is an interesting take on American Foreign Policy and in many ways he's right; however, his view of America as an hegemonic imperialisitic empire hellbent on world domination is obsurd and frankly his only theme. Let's not forget how we got here.
You see Dr. Johnson as a hero and probably see the same in Daniel Ellsberg or perhaps even Julian Assange. I see people who find America to be a cancer and deny American exceptionalism, simple as that.
Intelligent people can disagree Johnson, you and I will have to, but please for the sake of those of us who don't know the secrets you know and like to live our lives believing in the American Fairy Tale, dispense with the melodramatic pity party.
That puts things in perspective
ReplyDeletethe phrase "tax the rich" is a catchy campaign slogan but doesn't do much for us down in the trenches. Ending stupid spending and cutting taxes would be more beneficial to most of us
perfect "foxed news" non-issue...
ReplyDeletereinforces the harmless nature of tax breaks for the rich...
stupid spending?
how about hundreds of millions per day for wars we lose?
how 'bout a billion per day for research and development of weapons that will never become reality...
how about the $100 mil yearly for the federal helium program...
you remember helium...used in blimps...
program started in 1929...
just never ended...so stupid the feds decided to classify the specifics of info...
rumors that an equally stupid ex-prez now owns the contract.
so...
not only is this post deceptive math, it is magic math...
and the whole thing is designed to protect the long-running sweet tax deal for the rich...
course...
they did have to make some carefully placed payments to oil-skinned scummies in CONgress.
How do the rich have a sweet tax deal? I dont consider paying millions of dollars in taxes so sweet Johnson?
ReplyDeleteHere is some info you can read.
ReplyDeleteWhat income group pays the most federal income taxes today?
The latest data show that a big portion of the federal income tax burden is shouldered by a small group of the very richest Americans. The wealthiest 1 percent of the population earn 19 percent of the income but pay 37 percent of the income tax. The top 10 percent pay 68 percent of the tab. Meanwhile, the bottom 50 percent—those below the median income level—now earn 13 percent of the income but pay just 3 percent of the taxes. These are proportions of the income tax alone and don’t include payroll taxes for Social Security and Medicare.
But didn’t the Bush tax cuts favor the rich?
The New York Times reported recently that the average family in America with an income of $10 million or more received a half-million-dollar tax cut, while the middle class got crumbs (less than $100 shaved off their tax bill). If we examine the taxes paid in a static world—that is, if we assume that there was no change in behavior and economic performance as a result of the tax code—then these numbers are meaningful. Most of the tax cuts went to the super wealthy.
But Americans did respond to the tax cuts. There was more investment, more hiring by businesses, and a stronger stock market. When we compare the taxes paid under the old system with those paid after the Bush tax cuts, the rich are now actually paying a higher proportion of income taxes. The latest IRS data show an increase of more than $100 billion in tax payments from the wealthy by 2005 alone. The number of tax filers who claimed taxable income of more than $1 million increased from approximately 180,000 in 2003 to over 300,000 in 2005. The total taxes paid by these millionaire households rose by about 80 percent in two years, from $132 billion to $236 billion.
Here are some numbers you can read and base your own opinion off that.
ReplyDeleteWhat income group pays the most federal income taxes today?
The latest data show that a big portion of the federal income tax burden is shouldered by a small group of the very richest Americans. The wealthiest 1 percent of the population earn 19 percent of the income but pay 37 percent of the income tax. The top 10 percent pay 68 percent of the tab. Meanwhile, the bottom 50 percent—those below the median income level—now earn 13 percent of the income but pay just 3 percent of the taxes. These are proportions of the income tax alone and don’t include payroll taxes for Social Security and Medicare.
But didn’t the Bush tax cuts favor the rich?
The New York Times reported recently that the average family in America with an income of $10 million or more received a half-million-dollar tax cut, while the middle class got crumbs (less than $100 shaved off their tax bill). If we examine the taxes paid in a static world—that is, if we assume that there was no change in behavior and economic performance as a result of the tax code—then these numbers are meaningful. Most of the tax cuts went to the super wealthy.
But Americans did respond to the tax cuts. There was more investment, more hiring by businesses, and a stronger stock market. When we compare the taxes paid under the old system with those paid after the Bush tax cuts, the rich are now actually paying a higher proportion of income taxes. The latest IRS data show an increase of more than $100 billion in tax payments from the wealthy by 2005 alone. The number of tax filers who claimed taxable income of more than $1 million increased from approximately 180,000 in 2003 to over 300,000 in 2005. The total taxes paid by these millionaire households rose by about 80 percent in two years, from $132 billion to $236 billion.
It would be nice if people would quote their sources for their info instead of just throwing out one sided talking points. If you are informed about facts then they should be shared. From either side.
ReplyDeleteWell said Jake. The info is only as good as the person reporting it.
ReplyDeleteincome stats can usually be found on the census website. either they don't care about disparities or they are not following orders.
ReplyDeleteone of their most telling charts is income level since 1900. if you check it out, make sure you keep in mind that family incomes today are the result of numerous jobs as opposed to one prior to 1960.
i'm sure the average amelikan wishes he had to pay 100k in taxes.
not only did bush forgive the rich their taxes (wanted to make the cuts PERMANENT) but...
remember the "rebates"?
The problem is that the rich have ALEC ghostwriting the law FOR them.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.justice.org/cps/rde/xbcr/justice/ALEC_Report.pdf
In addition to this is the PR campaigns that convince stupid poor people living in a trailer that the estate tax is unAmerican.
DeCon the estate tax is unamerican! Double taxation is wrong, plain and simple. Over and over Congress continues to invent ways to continue to tax us to support bloated bureaucracies and runaway government spending. The estate tax is one of those clever inventions.
ReplyDeleteObviously you have decided that it is American to tax people who have acquired wealth and paid taxes throughout their lifetimes on the income and then must pay an additional 35% when they pass on. Unbelieveable.
It doesn't affect many people, right? Take a farmer who passes away and has assets exceeding $5,000,000 in land, cash, buildings, investments, equipment and other capital. In today's age a decent size farm can easily exceed the exemption limit. Without an estate plan the farmer's heirs often need to borrow money or liquidate the assets in order to pay the taxes the parent worked a lifetime to build. It happens all the time.
It is double taxation and is a ridiculous extension of class warfare if there ever was one.
the rich could tell you that only those too dumb or cheap to get a good tax lawyer pay taxes.
ReplyDeletebut...
they never give out advice on money.
they don't spend their money...
they spend YOUR money.
YOU pay the taxes, thank you.
Johnson you strike me as an incredibly juvenile, resentful and bitter individual!
ReplyDeleteYou offer little to the conversation and in most cases, simply repel those who wish to provide meaningful conversation to interesting posts.
However, you are entitled to your venomous and often spurious opinions thanks to the freedoms this great country we live in provides to you guaranteed by our Constitution.
It is our right to discount your insanity by seeking to read and comment elsewhere.
That is a very sobering video. It seems everyone in the country seems to know we need to cut the budget except the congress.
ReplyDeleterailer:
ReplyDeleteyou could strike me in many ways, perhaps some of them less than flattering...
but that would not be germane to anything addressed here.
by the by the rights you refer to are inalienable...
not guaranteed...
the guarantee comes via "the people"...
how's your patriot act doing as "the people" slept through it all while you were lied to again...
you can now be stopped for no reason...
raided with no warrant...
phone tapped...
mail opened...(actually since the fifties... see cia SHAMROCK program)
bank account reviewed...
arrested and disappeared on rumor.
you might be fine with that...
the soviets were.
i come by the complaints posted here fairly honestly...
i have no idea what lies you experienced from childhood and on the rise through school, church and community.
i was told that i was blessed to live in the greatest christian nation on the planet...
with limitless possibilities and a virtual guaranteed decent and rich life...more especially if i SERVED.
so i did.
i wore an insignia on my beret back in 69 that read "de oppresso libre" or "to free the oppressed".
as a medic i was expected to contribute to the welfare of a village and its people...
on patrol we were expected to murder anyone who refused to cooperate with our shocking agenda whether or not they were from the very same village.
the greatest christian nation on the planet expected us to be fine with war crimes (as it does today) if not crimes against humanity...remember 12 yo kim phuc running naked and on fire down a dirt road in name?
there was no military gain to be had on that napalm sortie and everybody knew it.
i was pretty clear about the realities of this nation versus the star spangled banner and old glory by the time i hit college. i lucked out with a scholarship (actually family legacy) to attend the most expensive college in the country. as white trash in the midst of trust fund babies who would soon populate the board rooms of corporations already dictating our lives, i was sensitive to the crass attitudes and behavior toward less grand folks.
let's review...
korea...a lie...lost
nam...a lie...lost
iraq...a lie...lost
afghanistan...a lie... losing
libya...a lie...would lose
the EXACT course of the ussr...
what? are we really retarded?
i might have missed your expansive contributions to the conversation...
other than the pro forma mutual admiration society obligations...
you might be kind enough to explain the "meaningful" in the "interesting posts"...
you do have the right to ignore the sheer insanity of the greatest christian nation on the planet...
and just play house.
if you are interested in facts...
20 yr vet of the cia and professor emeritus in international relations of u cal, chalmers johnson tells a detailed tale.
but you fun the risk of seeing through the pap and the phony of fox news and the flea, er, tea party.
you got it wrong railroader,, its not johnson thats insane, hes just a messenger.. those in power are, as evidenced by this video.
ReplyDeleteYou Mr. Johnson have no idea who I am or what I have done. I appreciate the view of your life, but I didn't ask for your resume.
ReplyDeleteI thank you for your service to our great nation, but I will not apologize for your life or the consequences of your actions.
You still live in the freest of nations in this menacing world and excercise your right to freedom speech which is inalienable, but it is endowed by our creator, Johnson. Yes, we the people grant authority to the government, consent of the governed?
We are all entitled to our own opinion of this great nation, I choose to see it in a glass half full point of view, you the opposite, apparently.
You think you have been lied to, fine. The tragedy of the human experience is that we think beyond instinct and therefore have the ability to become paranoid. I see lies and propaganda, sure, but I don't see black helicopters. Perhaps I live a naive existence in your opinion because I have not seen the things you write of, but I have seen things that make me believe in good and evil and it does exist. For me I would rather our government do the things it needs to do to protect us and forget the expensive frills the enlightended nations of Europe dreamed up as inalienable rights. If we do this, we could cut the budget and not need to tax the rich, whatever that means.
So yes, Johnson we are off topic and I will end it with you with this little tidbit. Chalmers Johnson was a cold war political scientist who saw the post coldwar world in a way where America is no longer necessary. I disagree. His blowback theory is an interesting take on American Foreign Policy and in many ways he's right; however, his view of America as an hegemonic imperialisitic empire hellbent on world domination is obsurd and frankly his only theme. Let's not forget how we got here.
You see Dr. Johnson as a hero and probably see the same in Daniel Ellsberg or perhaps even Julian Assange. I see people who find America to be a cancer and deny American exceptionalism, simple as that.
Intelligent people can disagree Johnson, you and I will have to, but please for the sake of those of us who don't know the secrets you know and like to live our lives believing in the American Fairy Tale, dispense with the melodramatic pity party.
FYI: Robert Anderson, aka railroader59501.
ReplyDeleteYou Mr. Johnson have no idea who I am or what I have done. I appreciate the view of your life, but I didn't ask for your resume.
ReplyDeleteI thank you for your service to our great nation, but I will not apologize for your life or the consequences of your actions.
You still live in the freest of nations in this menacing world and excercise your right to freedom speech which is inalienable, but it is endowed by our creator, Johnson. Yes, we the people grant authority to the government, consent of the governed?
We are all entitled to our own opinion of this great nation, I choose to see it in a glass half full point of view, you the opposite, apparently.
You think you have been lied to, fine. The tragedy of the human experience is that we think beyond instinct and therefore have the ability to become paranoid. I see lies and propaganda, sure, but I don't see black helicopters. Perhaps I live a naive existence in your opinion because I have not seen the things you write of, but I have seen things that make me believe in good and evil and it does exist. For me I would rather our government do the things it needs to do to protect us and forget the expensive frills the enlightended nations of Europe dreamed up as inalienable rights. If we do this, we could cut the budget and not need to tax the rich, whatever that means.
So yes, Johnson we are off topic and I will end it with you with this little tidbit. Chalmers Johnson was a cold war political scientist who saw the post coldwar world in a way where America is no longer necessary. I disagree. His blowback theory is an interesting take on American Foreign Policy and in many ways he's right; however, his view of America as an hegemonic imperialisitic empire hellbent on world domination is obsurd and frankly his only theme. Let's not forget how we got here.
You see Dr. Johnson as a hero and probably see the same in Daniel Ellsberg or perhaps even Julian Assange. I see people who find America to be a cancer and deny American exceptionalism, simple as that.
Intelligent people can disagree Johnson, you and I will have to, but please for the sake of those of us who don't know the secrets you know and like to live our lives believing in the American Fairy Tale, dispense with the melodramatic pity party.
robert...
ReplyDeletegot you message the first time...
eat your twinkies and enjoy your fairy tale...
the founders had that little thing of critical diligence...
for some fool reason.