Tax the Rich More

The idea of cutting taxes on the rich, so they will have more money, so they will ‘create jobs’ and hire more people, is nonsense.  Why would they hire more people, to make money, when they already get the money with the tax cuts? And why would they hire anybody, if the people have no money, and are already in debt?  If the people have no money, they can’t buy anything. (O, sure, they could go deeper in debt.)  So the rich can’t sell the people anything, so there is no reason to hire anyone to sell them anything, nor is there any reason to hire anyone to make anything to sell.

What can you rely on the rich to do?  You can rely on the rich to try and take money from other people. 

So the way to get the rich to hire someone is to get the money to the people.  Then the rich will hire that someone to take that money from the people.  The rich will hire someone to make things, and others sell those things to the people, to get their money.

But getting money to the people is inflationary, you say.  Well, take the money from the rich in the first place.  Tax the rich. Tax the rich more.  

Letting the rich have all the wealth is not in anyone's interest, not even the interests of the rich themselves. With the rich having all the wealth, the interests of the people and the rich diverge.  No longer is the promise of advancement plausible to the people.  No longer do the people see the benefits to contributing to a society which has taken everything they had, and left them effective slaves. Only compulsion will continue to secure their grudging labor, and this will not be enough to sustain the commonwealth, which is itself the foundation of all private wealth.  And without its foundation, private wealth will dissolve. 

The rich have more power when they are less wealthy, for then their society is richer, and more powerful, and they can protect, and project, their interests into the world more fully.

The Party of the Rich has Triumphed in its Spead of Disinformation

The party of the rich has triumphed in its spread of disinformation. Check out this poll by Bob Livingston,  “Poll Results: Higher Taxes for the Rich or More Drastic Spending Cuts,” at personalliberty.com:

http://personalliberty.com/poll-results-higher-taxes-for-the-rich-or-more-drastic-spending-cuts/?eiid=

Of course, Bob is somewhat to the Right of Center, as are his readers and the responders to his poll. See Q5.  But, among his responders: 60% think that higher taxes on the rich will hurt the economy, and only 23% voted to increase taxes on the  richest Americans.  76% voted the government should make significant spending cuts to try to reduce the deficit. 

As for where those budget cuts should come from, 0% voted for cuts in Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid, (except for the 18% who voted ‘All of the above.’)  22% voted for cuts to Foreign aid, which is an insignificant portion of the budget.  A bit of disinformation there.  27%, (the largest,) voted  for the elimination of Federal Agencies (the EPA, Dept of Education, etc.  You know, things to do with our future, and Justice, the Treasury, including the IRS, etc., things to do with running the day to day stuff.)  Only 7% voted for cuts in the Dept of  Defense, despite its legendary wastefulness. 

For a more realistic perspective on what can and cannot be done, check out the NY Times ‘Budget Puzzle’, from Nov 13, 2010: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2010/11/13/weekinreview/deficits-graphic.html

But the real bottom line, of course, is the coddling of the rich. Getting 60% thinking that increasing taxes on the rich will hurt the economy, against all historical evidence, including the evidence of their own experience.   Taxes on the rich haven’t been lower in most of these readers’ lifetimes, and when during those lifetimes has the economy ever been in such sorry shape? This is surely one of history’s great triumphs of propaganda.  Getting a sizeable percentage of the population to think against their own interests, to identify with those who exploit them, and to imagine their interests align with those who, over the past 30 years or so, have taken over 15% of their income, (http://anamecon.blogspot.com/2010/10/what-income-of-top-1-means-to-rest-of.html ) and a greater percent of their wealth, is astounding.

It is also a triumph over logic:  What the rich do not pay in taxes, the rest of the people will have to. What the rich do not pay for defense, or for the common wealth of the people that is the government, the rest of the people will have to. Further, who does the government borrow from?   The rich.  So the rich are giving their money to the government anyhow, but when it is borrowed, they expect it paid back, eventually.  With interest.  And where does that money come from?  The people. 

And who’s services will get cut?  Not the rich’s.  The people’s.  When Education, Health and Human Services, Energy, all get cut, who will be the poorer?  Not the rich.  You can bet the rich will have the money to grease the palms of Congressmen to keep their places at the public trough warm and well stocked. 

And who will be at the front lines when the payrolls of government are slashed?  The Wall Street banker?  Or the Main Street small businessman, who depends on government wage earners, and other government expenditures, directly or indirectly, for a part of his business. 

What is your citizenship worth?

What is your citizenship worth? A monetary value can be put on it. Is it still positive? Is it still worth something positive? Or has it become a burden? It is supposed to be a blessing.

Consider the negative value added to it by the national debt. At about $10Trillion or so, or about $33,000 for every man, woman and child, about $60,000 for every worker. And climbing. Taxes also take away from the value of citizenship, but with taxes, we buy things, and the value of these things adds to the value of citizenship. So add to that the benefits provided by society. Schools, highways, rule of law, etc. What should be a very significant net positive. Hard to put exact figures on them. Perhaps willingness to pay. Plus a premium. When you think about it, schools, law enforcenment, and many other public goods supported by our taxes, really are a bargain.

But in any case, citizenship is worth less than it was before, for most of us:

http://prospect.org/cs/articles?article=the_impunity_of_the_roberts_court

http://prospect.org/cs/articles?article=signing_away_our_rights

But not for some:

http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2011/04/wachovia-paid-trivial-fine-for-nearly-400-billion-of-drug-related-money-laundering.html

Not exactly the 'shining city on a hill' mentioned by Ronald Reagan. Not exactly an example for others to follow, either. With increasing debt, budget cuts to education and so forth, loss of rights in the workplace, etc, the value of citizenship seems to be decreasing. What will happen if, or when, the value turns negative, the bribes for obedience are no longer enough, and propaganda can no longer hide the fact that citizenship in the United States has, for many, becomes an increasingly onerous burden? Will they sell their citizenship to the highest bidder, by which I mean the rights citizenship confers? Piecemeal, perhaps? Or will the people organize, and reestablish a new citizenship, under new terms?

A Letter to the President

Yesterday I sent this letter to President Obama:

The President of the United States
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President,

My name is_____________.

I will not vote for you.

I voted for you in 2008. I will not vote for you. Neither will I vote for any Democrat, whom I have loyally supported in the past.

You can raise a trillion dollars for your reelection, Mr. President, and I will not vote for you.

Sincerely,

x_____________

I have sent similar letters to my Democratic Representative, and my Democratic Senator

Granted it’s a little short on explanation.

The explanation is basically here

I had hoped that Mr. Obama’s election would provide a remedy to what I see as happening to this country. I know now that it did not. I believe now that in fact there is no real opportunity, through the democratic process as it is now, to change things. I, and those like me, simply do not have the attention of our rulers.

I am not wealthy. I am not one of them.

As long as I continue vote, they will ignore me, and what I have to say. They may nod, but they will not act. As long as I continue to vote, I am playing the game by their rules. They are winning, and I am losing. And my country deteriorates, its heritage mocked and its future squandered.

Only if I, and millions of others like me, refuse to continue to participate in this charade of a democracy, will they pay attention. To us. And to the law.

The choice is yours. You can continue to vote, and have your voice ignored, or you can send them a letter, and refuse to vote for them. Any of them. And tell your friends, that you have done this. That you have sent the President a letter, and that you will refuse to vote for him, or any of them. That you refuse to consent to what has become essentially a kleptocracy, a nation governed by theft, where the poor and middle class, the worker, the people, are essentially being robbed, even of what they still have. Where you are essentially being robbed, of both rights and wealth, even of what you still have.

Even if they have not come for you yet, they will. They cannot help it. They cannot stop themselves. Even if you do not yet bear the burden of debt, you will. Only the very few, will have anything left for themselves. You already have less than you know, for the debt of your government is your debt. And who do you owe?

If you are satisfied with the occasional bone they may throw you, be satisfied. Play your part in their game, if you think thereby to prosper. Vote.

If not, then do what I am doing, and what I have done, and what I will do. Refuse to vote for any of them.

Send the President a letter. And tell your friends, your fellow citizens, who are also being robbed, of both rights and wealth, even of what they still have.

Only in this way can we recapture the government for the people. For ourselves.

Refuse to vote for any of them.

Send the President a letter.

And tell your friends, your fellow citizens.

Our Government is the Captive of the Wealthy

We no longer live in a democracy.
Our government is the captive of the wealthy. Such is their power, so complete the government’s servitude, that it is by many not even seen for the prisoner it is. The people are blinded to the evidence, though this captivity is the cause of their distress.
The elections, as they have proceeded, did not change this. Hidden money has flowed into the coffers of the candidates, cementing the hold the wealthy and influential have over them. The candidates did not speak to it. Our elected officials do not speak of it. The Congress is now seeded with the lackeys of the wealthy, who do as they are told. It will get worse for the people. Our government, no longer a government of the people, will remain the captive of the wealthy.

As their captive, our government does their bidding:
It allows the manipulation and degradation of its money, forcing the people into debt, and servitude to the wealthy.
It lowers the taxes of the wealthy, and the taxes of their corporations. At the same time, it borrows from them, and accumulates a ruinous debt, an unseen burden on the people, to the great gain of the wealthy.
It reduces its regulation of the activities of the wealthy, allowing them to exploit the people.
It rescues the corporations of the wealthy when they squander their assets. It places the burden of these debts upon the backs of the people.
It subsidizes their corporations when they cannot compete on their own, and guarantees their profits.
It defends and subsidizes an inefficient and inadequate system of healthcare, one increasingly ruinous to the people, and immensely profitable to the wealthy.
It neglects the assets of the people, and allows them to crumble. It refuses to capitalize and invest in the people's future.
It allows its educational system to deteriorate, that the people may be more easily manipulated and restrained.
It refuses to effectively defend the nation’s borders against unfair trade, and illegal immigration, driving down the wages of the people, and for the profit of the wealthy.
It sells the property of the people to the wealthy, at less than its true value.
It buys things from the wealthy at exorbitant prices.
It allows and encourages the destruction of the nation’s natural resources, to the profit of the wealthy.
It prosecutes an undeclared war in a distant country, squandering the people’s assets, and thousands of the people’s lives, as well as the lives of innocents. A war from which the wealthy derive unjust profit.
It raises the specter of Terror against the people, where little is seen. It makes enemies in distant places, to the profit of the wealthy.
It enforces laws that are harsh against the people, yet excuses the wealthy.
It compromises the people’s right to due process.
It placates the people with the people’s own money, and deflects the people’s anger away from the wealthy.
It allows the press to also become the captive of the wealthy, to speak with their voice, and to distract the people with the inconsequential.
It obfuscates the nature of its actions, and the actions of the wealthy, to the confusion of the people.
It silences the discourse of the people, with insinuations of unpatriotism.
It enacts laws which perpetuate and rationalize its captivity
It enacts laws which increase its powers to do these things, to the greater harm of the people.

The government does all this in servitude to the wealthy, to the harm of the people, and the nation.
And finally, the wealthy cause this to their own harm. The wealthy gild their plumbing with their plunder, with what they gnaw from the true foundation of their wealth, which is the people, for it is by the people’s toil and sweat, and forbearance, that the wealthy live their lives of privilege.
The recent elections have strengthened the grip of the wealthy on our government: The government will enact policies that further aggravate the disparity of wealth and income between the wealthy and the people. It will inflict hardship on the people, and further insulate the wealthy from the consequences of their misrule.
Make no mistake, this land is ruled by the wealthy, and they rule for their own pleasure, and at the expense of the people. They become an ever greater burden on the people, and treat the people with ever greater contempt.
But the people are pillar on the top of which they prance.

The Interests of the Wealthy

When the wealthy seize control of government, the wealthy cannot help but destroy the society which supports them.

In the short term, it is in the separate interests of the wealthy to corrupt the system to their benefit. That is, they will seek their own benefits ahead of the people's, first by becoming the instruments of government policy, then by bending government policy to their interests. They will cooperate with each other to do this, and secure advantage over the people. Securing advantage, they will plunder the wealth of the people. This is what (most of) the national debt is. It is what the people 'owe' the rich. Instead of paying taxes, wealthy 'loan' the money to the government, which it then has to pay back. The wealthy have used their power to cause this.

In securing their separate interests, they will cooperate in gaining favors. They will trade for votes. This is not 'zero sum' as regular trade is, but each party gains, and both their influence on, and burden on, government and the people, will expand. That is, through the instrument of government, they each acquire disproportionate wealth. And since all resources are competed for, others, the people, are at a disadvantage. The system becomes rigged.

But then they will compete, they must compete, to secure advantage over each other, and further advantage over the people. The government becomes an instrument of their competition, as they compete for its favors. Those who do not compete will be at a competitive disadvantage.

So all the wealthy are forced to compete against each other. They will compete to cause the government to pursue purposes to their own separate ends,which is the very definition of corruption. These interests, the benefit of the wealthy, harm the system, and the people, necessarily, by the law of externality: Those costs which can be externalized, will be. Thus the costs of the benefits to the wealthy will be laid upon the people, until the wealth f the people is exhausted. We are seeing this happening in the present 'recession.'

But the welfare of the people is essential to the welfare of the wealthy, and where it is destroyed, so is their own welfare. If the destroy the income flow of the people, they destroy their own income flow as well.

A poor society has few rich people. Neither has it much power to project, or even protect its interests.

In the long term, an uncorrupted government serves the interests of the wealthy better. A government can only remain uncorrupted to such degree as the influence of the wealthy is limited.

The people have been losing the competition for their government. They have persistently elected the servants of the rich to office. Now the system is rigged in the favor of the wealthy. Not good.

Cross posted as comment to angrybearblog.com: Maule and Pappas on progressive taxation and the decreasing burden on the rich