I wish I had lived back in the Barry Goldwater days. When you had two parties, not completely beholden to big business, and if you needed fiscal responsibility you could get it. This past election cycle the Democrats to a "thumping." But everyone knows the majority of the reason is the sluggish response to the economy. There are two major factors to that, and I will get to those later. But the campaign of the GOP (Great to who?) was that we weren't getting jobs because the tax cuts were set to expire and and the rich wouldn't hire and small businesses that file 1040 would be punished. And on top of that, "Obamacare", which is a nickname for the Affordable Health Care Act, would tax businesses right out of the market. This is of course ridiculous for many reasons but none greater than they are making the Liberal argument. Health Insurance premiums are skyrocketing and Business is refusing to make up the difference and pass that cost to the workers because they cannot "afford" it. Well, 80% of them can, but it means the shareholders will get a smaller dividend, and in Reagan America, there is nothing worse than the workers getting a rise in standard of living at the cost of insane profits for the ownership. Any way you spin it, Business says healthcare is too expensive, but recoil in horror when you mention ways to cheapen the cost, because it means a business, and hence ownership may see profits drop to help the people, and again, that is conservative sacrilege. Of course the GOP doesn't mention that our last 3 booms were built on bubbles, while our infrastructure crumbles, and the reason debt is rising is our becoming a "nanny state", because with cost of living going up every day, real wages have been stagnant for 30 years. I know no Liberal politician has the balls to say it so I will, "The GOP is purposefully making the USA a nanny state and has almost succeeded which is why they are now starting to demand cuts to social services to manage the budget, while not touching anything that reduces profits for any business sector so that the can create a new Feudal society where none of us can care for ourselves so they can have a Noble Class again." The Founding Fathers would be so furious with the GOP they would champion War against it, considering them a foreign Nation. The war on the Middle Class continues.
So let's hop into the Republican debate on the Debt, the Deficit, and the cure for the ails. Let's start with Paul Ryan, the GOP favorite right now for his "serious" attempt to solve the debt. The greatest part of his plan is to reduce the top Corporate and Personal tax rates to 25%. They have wanted a flat tax forever and now they are making the big push. Because a flat tax is more "fair". Really? 25% of someone who makes $30,000 barely leaves enough to live a life, and negates the thought of health insurance, and other benefits that reduce State costs long term. Our biggest cost in Medicare is Chronic Illnesses or Injuries. If these issues were taken care of long ago, the cost when those folks were elderly would be reduced. Now if you tax 25% of $1 million, well, that person pays $250,000 in taxes. That's a lot of dollars, but that person is left with $750,000 plus whatever they can reduce of the $250,000 with tax shelters and other loopholes. $750,000 is a huge some of money, you could buy your home in cash, pay for all your children's college tuition, have brand new cars, have fantastic insurance of all kinds, and still have more money left over than many of us make over 2 years. This loss of perspective ignores the fact that these individuals make their money BECAUSE of our society and government. Subsidies, credits, low interest loans, the IRS, and other governmental constructs added to the most important, a incredibly strong military and security structure. Basically by denying these taxes should be paid, people are advocating for a Russia style America. Mobs are the security and only the rich are safe, while the people barely survive but do it anyway to live, until they revolt and kill some of the rich. Happened many times before and it would happen again. Back to Mr. Ryan. He says the loss of revenue from the cuts would be offset by the closing of many loopholes. The same ploy Reagan used. That right there should be enough for the GOP to never win another election, if our public had any kind of intellect. A Conservative and fiscally responsible leader would say "first we fix these silly loopholes that let some people cheat. Then if we are bringing in more than we need, we can start reducing taxes." It doesn't work the other way around. Giving the tax cuts before improving revenue is a cash grab, pure and simple.
It never ceases to amaze me how many people are so brainwashed by the sound bite party and their pundits (amazingly Glenn Beck was fired, but the rest are still there, and Beck ain't going to go quietly) that they will vote against their best interest. Many will tell me, "making the rich pay so much more is unfair." Yet all my life when I theorize that something isn't fair I am told that life isn't fair. So if that argument doesn't work for most of us, why does it work for the rich? I assume the reason is because we all dream of being the rich one someday. I also hold no sympathy for people who say the debt and deficit is a huge concern but paying more taxes to reduce that debt, while having 30 of nearly unregulated wealth and business practices, that made these people from rich to uber wealthy. And I also understand that a large number of responsible millionaires and billionaires have said the responsible thing to do would be to raise taxes. What is the difference between the rich who would willingly pay more and those who wouldn't is patriotism. You either love your country and will help with a small portion of your income to keep it from collapsing in on itself or you say to hell with my country, its all about me. I guess it depends what kind of world you want to live in. But there is a fundamental economic certainty; When everyone does better, everyone does better.
Of course eventually at the rate we are going, the middle-class will be working day and night just to pay the essential bills whilst all their possessions are owned by a creditor. The poor will become transients and a tiny sliver of the population will be wealthy. The war on the middle class continues. A simple perusal of GOP policies leads you inexorably to one conclusion, war has been declared on the middle class and the goal is a feudal state of America. 33% of millions is never going to be anywhere as painful as 25% of $30,000 and few individuals in the top bracket even pay close to that much due to loopholes, tax shelters and itemized deductions. And lets not forget the other Conservative Lie that the rich create jobs. Wrong, small and mid size business create the vast majority of jobs, and most of these businesses are started by middle class individuals who have enough credit/assets to put it all on the line for their dream. These incredible loopholes for individuals and top corporate rates are just another way to raise the barriers to entry. America seems to have finally evolved to where Old money doesn't want to play or converse with New money, and the old money folks seem dead set on reducing the number of people joining the rich club as possible.
There is nothing is hate more than bullshit, especially when it has a big ribbon around it. Don't pretend you are doing what you can to help my country. You are destroying my country 100% out of greed. The government is here to protect the people, not business, that's why we all joined in on this social contract. But I know few people in this country have the ability to think and let the pundits do it for them. And most conservatives I know believe the GOP is in favor of personal liberty, patriotism, American exceptionalism, American morality, and smaller government. How long can the GOP do the complete opposite before these fools wake up?
