Give Workers A Break, Not Wal-Mart

I would love for the estate tax to be permanently repealed as McCain wants. How many people want pay taxes on their estate? I would also love my investment returns to be tax-free. Who wants to pay taxes on that stuff. McCain gave tax breaks to the steel industry - isnt that a unionized industry. Better run that past the United Steal Workers of America Alex. McCain is the man for lower taxes. Thank you for bringing this to everyone’s attention. Vote McCain

Tim: Nobody would want the estate tax repealed more than the Waltons or the McCains-with their vast holdings and with Mrs. McCain’s recent infusion of additional wealth from the sale of Budweiser, The Waltons ,and their millions of $ in contributions to Standford University have been pushing this-and charter schools -for years now. (Check out Hoover Institute at Stanford University.) The U.S. steel industry recently caught a break from the World Trade Organization when it was determined that certain types of steel piping being imported from China was a violation of trade standards and will result in tariffs of up to 700% for the next five years on the Chinese steel pipe.

Over-taxing businesses and the rich is always the answer.  That way all the businesses and wealthy people leave the country, and we can lose all their tax dollars along with all the money they put into the economy.  My state has practiced that approach for years now, and now, guess what, there are fewer and fewer businesses in my state, and more in most the neighboring states.  Maybe it is just a coincidence.

One practice that has always stumped me, is how Liberals (or Progressives), focus on the rich!!  So much so, that if something like tax cuts on capital gains or the estate tax could affect 10 million people and 200 of them are rich, they will vote against it, even though it will punish 9.9 million ordinary people, to keep those 200 rich people from getting a break!!  It is not only rich people who have capital gains and in most cases, those estates were built on money that has already been taxed once, why should it be taxed a second time?  In my estimation, people shouldn’t have to pay taxes on money that was used to pay taxes, used to be, that prior paid taxes (sales taxes, etc.) could be used as a deduction, so you didn’t pay tax on tax!!

What stumps me is why neither one of you is complaining about the bailout of Bear Stearns. Or the Countrywide debacle-bundled subprime loans ,most owned by Japanese and Indian investors. Or the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac-whose mortgages are held primarily by Japanese investors...(although it is Americans who would ultimately be rendered homeless in their OWN homeland) But the biggest question of all is why you two have such digust for welfare on a personal level,i.e.,"Welfare Queens”, but seem stone deaf at the roaring sound of the giant beast ravenously suckling at the obscenely voluptous teat of Corporate Welafare-of which WalMart is continuously engorging itself ,yet is NEVER , EVER satisfied. Perhaps you identify more with greed, than need.also.

but seem stone deaf at the roaring sound of the giant beast ravenously suckling at the obscenely voluptous teat of Corporate Welafare-------while the rest of the country is relelgated to suckling “hind tit.”.................For those unfamiliar with the term,” hind tit,"it means the last teat near the tail,less milk,and reserved for the runt of the litter, the very last in the pecking order.

Over-taxing businesses and the rich is always the answer.  That way all the businesses and wealthy people leave the country, and we can lose all their tax dollars along with all the money they put into the economy~Dave~Note: Looks like UNDER-taxing has allowed the wealthy to stay here AT the tax expense of the underclasses.

35% tax rate for the wealthy is undertaxing?  Really?  They get to keep less than a third of their money and they are undertaxed. 

“A few weeks ago, the Internal Revenue Service released data on tax year 2003. They show that the top 1 percent of taxpayers, ranked by adjusted gross income, paid 34.3 percent of all federal income taxes that year. The top 5 percent paid 54.4 percent, the top 10 percent paid 65.8 percent, and the top quarter of taxpayers paid 83.9 percent. “http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1535126/posts

So the wealthy pay 83.9% of the taxes in the US and somehow they are staying here at the expense of the underclasses.  How does that work exactly?

“What stumps me is why neither one of you is complaining about the bailout of Bear Stearns.”

What bailout of Bear Stearns, I was under the impression that JPMorgan/Chase bought the company out?

“Or the Countrywide debacle-bundled subprime loans”

Didn’t Bank of America take that one on?

“But the biggest question of all is why you two have such digust for welfare on a personal level,i.e.,"Welfare Queens”, but seem stone deaf at the roaring sound of the giant beast ravenously suckling at the obscenely voluptous teat of Corporate Welafare-of which WalMart is continuously engorging itself”

For my part, it has to do with benefit to society, Welfare Queens, are a pure drain on society and give nothing in return for what they are paid, but, on the other hand, companies like Wal-Mart, get ‘breaks’ from governments, which are legally offered to them, and in return, they provide jobs, which pay wages, which increase income taxes, they generate sales tax revenue, and after awhile, DO pay taxes on income and real estate!!  It may not be to the standard you choose to desire, but, remember, it is the lawmakers who create those ‘breaks’, not Wal-Mart!!  If there is a tax law or regulation, why shouldn’t Wal-Mart or any other company take advantage of it, you take advantage of your tax ‘breaks’, don’t you?

“Looks like UNDER-taxing has allowed the wealthy to stay here AT the tax expense of the underclasses.”

If the wealthy pay the majority of taxes, how do you figure that they are under taxed?  At what rate would you feel they are being taxed ‘fairly’ and paying their ‘fair share’?  Why is it ‘fair’ for one person to pay more in taxes than someone else, just because he/she earns more money, aren’t all Americans supposed to be created ‘equal’?  And, on top of that, why should one person pay NO taxes, while another person pays 35% of his/her income in taxes, is that ‘fair’?

Example:  Say you worked 50 hours a week at a good paying job, while your neighbor hated working, so he worked under the table a few hours a week and drew food stamps, hit up the churches to help pay bills, got a low income housing credit and generally sat around drinking beer and watching T.V. most of the time!!  Why should you pay a good share of your money in taxes, while he not only doesn’t pay any taxes, but gets a $4,000.00 refund to boot, is that ‘fair’?

I see it again and again.  People assuming that everyone on government programs is “milking it” or lazy.  Sure, there are people out there defrauding the government.  But look at Walmart and other big corporations like them who are the biggest abusers of the system.

And let us use that as an example.  Maybe some poor gal got knocked up at a young age because she came from a very conservative christian background and was never truly educated on how to prevent pregnancy.  Sure she took the abstinence pledge through her local church youth group but then one night she drank too much box wine after the barn dance.

Jeb told her he loved her and would marry her when she found out she was carrying his twins.  But then he got the calling and had to go fight in the Iraq war because his pro-military family told him it was just the honorable thing to do!  Two weeks later a roadside bomb hits him and his company and he survives but has lost both his legs.

So he comes home from the war and finds his government doesn’t really give two shits about him and despite all those bleeding heart liberals writing congress to get him better healthcare he just cannot get help for his post traumatic stress let alone the proper physical therapy, etc.

The mother of his children ends up taking a job at the local Walmart or Kmart and has to be put on WIC and medicaid because she cannot afford the company partially paid health insurance and the daycare.  She does qualify for a food card and soldier boy does too because he cannot get his old job back at the mill because being in a wheechair.  They live in sin together because they figured out they get more money from the government if they aren’t married.

....sure this a farfetched tale I just pulled out of my ass.  But this last poster and their assumptions that most people on welfare programs are just sitting on their ass collecting their checks while they watch TV and drink beer is so dead wrong.  I have worked with people in the system.  I have seen people busting their asses to get a job any job but get turned down again and again because of their disability, etc.

So many people have misfortune in there lives and don’t deserve it at all and have to turn to these programs until they can get back on their feet again.  You need to realize that the cliche lazy welfare check recipient is the exception rather than the norm.  You need to realize how many of our military men and women returning from this bogus war are having to go into the system!

And you know what, just the other day I was coming off the Marion street bridge in downtown Salem.  There is a park there practically right under the bridge when you turn to get on the Salem Parkway.  FYI, that is where I have seen quite a few vets with signs begging for money.  And not just the usual Vietnam vets...young ones that must be from Iraq and Afghanistan war.  TAKE THAT BILLO!!!

Blind Patriotism,

“....sure this a farfetched tale I just pulled out of my ass.”

And, a sad tale it is, but it does not reflect what is happening to ALL poor people in the ‘real world’ as a whole!!  It all comes down to ‘choices’, the choice to get drunk and then pregnant, the choice to choose daycare over the man watching the child, the choice to work at a ‘low paying job’ to qualify for government programs, the choice to not put forth the effort to gain a ‘skill’ to get a better job through a better education!!  I would be with you on helping people in sad situations, if I didn’t see so many people who are just “‘milking it’ and lazy”, people who aren’t even trying to do better!!  People who cry about NOT having food, but, have plenty of money to spend at the local tavern or buy those higher priced items!!  People who NEED a ‘cell phone’, a gas guzzeling car, and many other things, that cost money that would be better spent on food!!  People who work at ‘dead end’ jobs for years!!  And, people who STAY in areas that are the main cause of their problems ie: no jobs or high cost of living!!

“So many people have misfortune in there lives and don’t deserve it at all and have to turn to these programs until they can get back on their feet again.”

But, the problem lies in the fact, that MOST never get back on their feet!!

“You need to realize that the cliche lazy welfare check recipient is the exception rather than the norm.”

And, you need to realize, that what you said is not true, but, just YOUR evaluation!!  Go to a so-called getto area and see how many there are victims and how many are just NOT trying, because it is easier to cash a welfare check then it is to work 40 hours a week!!  Look at ‘drug’ use in ‘poor’ areas, are ‘drugs’ cheap?  Why aren’t they using that ‘drug’ money to get ahead in life?  You see Joe Blow down the street and think that he is n example of most “Unfortunates”!!

“where I have seen quite a few vets with signs begging for money.”

And, I have an ex-brother-in-law, who is a Viet-Nam Vet, who tried to get benefits for ‘Agent Orange exposure’ and ‘Post Traumatic Stress’, neither of which he had, after 3 years of pretending (I know because he admitted it to me), he recieved a big settlement for the Agent Orange and now lives off a monthly pension from the government!!  He used to STUDY the symptoms of PTS, to know what to do and say at testing!!  He says that the military owes it to him!!  BTW: He never saw combat, but worked in a supply depot, far from the fighting!!

You saw a FEW, what about the rest, where are they?  Probably back to their old life styles!!  Don’t let a few people cloud your view of the ‘big picture’!!

What bailout of Bear Stearns, I was under the impression that JPMorgan/Chase bought the company out?

Right RDS - mother government just loosened-up enough of her usual red tape to make the Bear Stearns buyout by Chase happen quickly, so that we, the taxpayers weren’t holding the bag.

Didn’t Bank of America take that one (Countrywide) on?

Yes, they did - though I am certain BofA is expecting a little something in return from the feds (namely by Uncle Sam lifting the 10 percent deposit cap which keeps BofA from any further U.S. expansion).

Good call…

Of course, I wouldn’t expect people who are jonesing for Wal-Mart 24/7 to know much about the rest of the financials…

...35% tax rate for the wealthy...

This is one of those toughies....who to believe? On one hand we have ‘Dave’ and on the other we have (drumroll please)… Warren Buffett!

Mr Buffett said that he was taxed at 17.7 per cent on the $46 million he made last year, without trying to avoid paying higher taxes, while his secretary, who earned $60,000, was taxed at 30 per cent.

So, Dave, if you paid 35% on those millions you made, you’re paying more than Buffett’s secretary! Time to quit doing your own taxes?

**Note to Double D:

You obviously didn’t get the memo. “Bail-out” has negative connotations and therefore the operative term has become ‘backstopping’. So far the government has only spent a few billions backstopping financial institutions but if we have to backstop Fannie and Freddie, it could go as high as 100 BILLION in tax-payer dollars.

35% is the federal tax rate for the highest tax bracket.  You can go to the IRS site and find that.  I’m sure Buffet found all kinds of neat ways to drop his taxable income, but his tax rate would still be 35% that is if you believe the IRS.  Until he posts his tax return I would rather believe the government, since they are the ones that make the tax laws, than a guy campaigning with Hilary Clinton, not that someone would stretch the truth in politics.

I think his secretary needs a new accountant.  Just off the tax table a person with a taxable income of $60,000 is supposed to pay $11,430 in taxes.  The 60,000 would be after the deductions and the tax rate is still only 19%, and there should have been more deductions after that as well.

Fave: What was that about people in politics stretching the truth and refusing to disclose their ENTIRE TAX RETURNS in this political campaign for President?

I’m sure Buffet found all kinds of neat ways to drop his taxable income, but his tax rate would still be 35% that is if you believe the IRS.

Once again, Dave, your comprehension skills are called into question. Should I explain what “without trying to avoid paying higher taxes” means?

Like I said at the beginning, who to believe, Dave, you or Warren Buffett?

“A better legacy than a Wal-Mart would be a vacant lot.” ~ Linda Bevard

It’s not me or Warren Buffett, it’s the IRS tax table or Warren Buffett.  I guess facts mean nothing when you have Warren Buffett’s word though.  I’m still curious how his secretary managed to pay more than the maximum amount for her wage.  I guess that is one of the mysteries of life.  Maybe she was just being extremely generous.  Also I read the part about him not trying to avoid paying higher taxes, perhaps he wasn’t but his accountant was. 

http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1040tt.pdf

There’s the tax table if it isn’t too much work to copy and paste the link.  I’m sure proof still isn’t good enough to take on the word of the great Warren Buffett though.  Can’t let the facts get in the way of a good lie.

Dave:"Can’t let the facts get in the way of a good lie”.~Dave~~~~You mean like this,Dave?

According to a marketing executive, an Edelman executive providing media training to his firm said:

Sometimes, you just have to stand up there and lie. Make the audience or the reporter believe that everything is ok. How many times have you heard a CEO stand up and say “No, I’m not leaving the company” and then - days later - he’s gone. Reporters understand that you “had” to do it and they won’t hold it against you in your next job when you deal with them again. ~~~~~~~~~~~(Edelman is WalMart’s Public Relations firm)

It’s not me or Warren Buffett...

Yes it is, and he beats you like a rented mule.

Besides, I had always heard the highest rate was 28%. Did Bush raise it when you weren’t looking?

The government should take the lead on making its businesses the most socially responsible in the world, not taking advice from a man whose company (Wal-Mart) is an international byword for exploitation. ~ Matthew McGregor, from the UK’s War On Want

Ken V: That’s pretty high falutin’. I always heard it said,"He WHUPPED him like a rented mule!” LOL!

“Besides, I had always heard the highest rate was 28%. Did Bush raise it when you weren’t looking?”

So apparently it was too much work to put the link into your browser, or did you just not want to know the truth?  Technically it isn’t exactly 35% It’s only 35% on the amount over $349,700+101,469.25 on the amount up to 349,700, but with what he makes I think the amount over 349,700 is enough to get it up to about 34.9999% which I think is enough to round up to 35%.  Also if you heard the highest rate was 28% why did you post that his secretary paid 30%?  Seems kind of dishonest to me.

Dave,

Didn’t you see in the charts, the section that read: Special 30% rate for Warren Buffett’s secretaries only?

Seems kind of dishonest to me.

You call Warren Buffett dishonest? I ask you readers. Who would know more about what Warren Buffett pays in taxes; Dave or Mr. Buffett himself?

What is it you righ wing-nuts are always harping about? Oh yeah...class envy. Must be catching, huh, Dave?

P.S. I wouldn’t trust any link you would post.

“P.S. I wouldn’t trust any link you would post.”

Not even the IRS site?  You would rather believe Warren Buffett, over the IRS, right?  If Warren Buffett even DID his own taxes, he still wouldn’t know more about it than the IRS!!

WAL*MART workers are uninformed and have little time to become informed BECAUSE MANY WORK TWO JOBS TO SURVIVE.  Still over 70% of WAL*MARTS employees recieve, out of necessity government assistance.  The family of WAL*MART avail themselves of indescent profits because they know that the right-wing Republican’s, now in office, will support their total lack of conscience.  McCain is disliked in his own state.  He has done nothing for Arizona and has been a life-long promoter of corporations like WAL*MART. We need a middle class daily onslaught on the White House with thousands of seniors, young people, and in general MIDDLE CLASS American’s, to stand up and revolt.  COMPANIES LIKE WAL*MART HAVE BROUGHT THE AMERICAN WORKER TO HIS/HER KNEES.

WAL*MART workers are uninformed and have little time to become informed BECAUSE MANY WORK TWO JOBS TO SURVIVE.  Still over 70% of WAL*MARTS employees recieve, out of necessity government assistance.  The family of WAL*MART avail themselves of indescent profits because they know that the right-wing Republican’s, now in office, will support their total lack of conscience.  McCain is disliked in his own state.  He has done nothing for Arizona and has been a life-long promoter of corporations like WAL*MART. We need a middle class daily onslaught on the White House with thousands of seniors, young people, and in general MIDDLE CLASS American’s, to stand up and revolt.  COMPANIES LIKE WAL*MART HAVE BROUGHT THE AMERICAN WORKER TO HIS/HER KNEES.

WAL*MART workers are uninformed and have little time to become informed BECAUSE MANY WORK TWO JOBS TO SURVIVE.  Still over 70% of WAL*MARTS employees recieve, out of necessity government assistance.  The family of WAL*MART avail themselves of indescent profits because they know that the right-wing Republican’s, now in office, will support their total lack of conscience.  McCain is disliked in his own state.  He has done nothing for Arizona and has been a life-long promoter of corporations like WAL*MART. We need a middle class daily onslaught on the White House with thousands of seniors, young people, and in general MIDDLE CLASS American’s, to stand up and revolt.  COMPANIES LIKE WAL*MART HAVE BROUGHT THE AMERICAN WORKER TO HIS/HER KNEES.

Ken:"P.S. I wouldn’t trust any link you would post.”

You don’t have to trust my link go to the IRS site and find out for yourself or look at the tax table in the instructions for last years taxes.  It’s kind of funny that you would rather go on believing what Warren Buffet said than to actually do some research and find out for yourself that what he said is impossible.  I guess the lie makes a better story for your cause.  Who cares about the truth when a lie might get a Democrat elected, right?

Who cares about the truth when a lie can get a country into war or get another Republican elected?

Who cares about the truth when a lie can get a country into war or get another Republican elected?

Nice job using my quote and changing Democrat to Republican and adding about the war.  You truly are a great thinker.  The only problem is that I have used the IRS site to prove that Warren Buffet lied and I have never lied about anything on this site, and you’ll have a tough time proving that Bush lied about the war as well.  Just because we haven’t found WMD doesn’t mean that Bush knew that ahead of time or that they weren’t there.  A high ranking Iraqi general from Saddam’s regime has said that they did have them and that they moved them out of the country before we invaded.  Clearly the Democrats know more than them since the Iraqis had first hand knowledge and the Democrats have their opinions.