I’m not comfortable with this picture. Pretty damned scary, if you ask me.
Could someone please tell me why we can’t use the wealthiest of the wealthy to pay off the national debt? I’m just learning about this issue and haven’t been able to find anything on that solution online. No need to bash me for the question, I’m not advocating an increase in taxes. I just want to understand.
>>Could someone please tell me why we can’t use the wealthiest of the wealthy to pay off the national debt?
The rich already account for the vast majority of tax revenue, and paying off the debt is not even a big deal anyways. Our national debt today is actually smaller, as a percentage of GDP, than it was in the early 1990s. Or in 1950, for that matter.
Well we can’t force the wealhiest Americans to pay off our debt. I’m using general figures here but the top 2% of our country, say 6 million people, would have to contribute about $15 million a piece as our national debt is $9.2 Trillion. Why would all or even any of them want to do that?
I’m sure that some of them are humanitarians but I don’t think they’re willing to be that generous.
Yeah, I think the Bush administration has been too comfy with the top 2% but I’d hate to go to an opposite extreme and over burden our wealthy citizens.
I feel some new taxes are in order and I trust the Obama presidency to spend it well.
I believe this war will end in a couple years after Barack takes office and that will put some money into our economy.
I see that green technology is very promising and Obama is a firm believer in leading the world with American green technology -what does that mean? It means better solar, battery, fuel economy technology. It means safer, cleaner nuclear and creating jobs by implementing these measures nation wide.
Brazil shocked the world by running their country on corn, America can do more by running ours on new technology.
The little I’ve read on it points to energy solutions I didn’t even realize possible. It’s amazing what we’re working on, but the Bush pittance will be replaced by an Obama well-funded initiative.
America needs to change and our economy will prosper but in order to embrace a promising new future we need to really reimagine how our country runs.
You know actually this photo is a pretty good metaphor for the state of the nation, the economy, the environment, and the ultimate fate of the human race.
The reason the wealthiest of the wealthy don’t pay off our national debt is probably because they don’t want to..should they be made to?…and of course, why?
Thanks a lot, RC. I’m about to have some kind of nervous breakdown. I just finished Zinn’s AMERICAN EMPIRE, and I’m 3 chapters into Alan’s RED, WHITE, AND LIBERAL. I’m being bombarded with information right now that’s showing me how corrupt members of our government can be… I can’t take anymore. It’s outrageous.
I’m going on vacation from politics and history before I snap.
“Human felicity is produced not as much by great pieces of good fortune that seldom happen as by little advantages that occur every day.” Benjamin Franklin
Why penalize those that haved achieved financial success? This is a capatalist society. The idea of penalizing the wealthy,or as Marx/Engles would say “the aristocracy” is classic communism.
I’m not saying “penalize” them. It’s just that the national debt is such a big deal to everyone. So I’m trying to understand, if it’s so important, why don’t we just
1. borrow the money from the wealthy
or
2. allow them to pay it, and then give them a tax break for “x” number of years until their taxes are equal to the amount of money that they contributed to the debt
I’m just throwing out ideas to help my brain understand the issue, that’s all. But it seems to me like we’re going to pretty much always be in debt. But then I don’t understand why everyone’s so concerned about it.
Thanks for the input provided thus far.
RC~ thanks for the nice quotes. I’m still about ready to snap, though. And Alan’s “pic pick” may be a great metaphor, but I’m scared of heights and so it’s scaring the hell out of me! :-)
I’m not comfortable with this picture. Pretty damned scary, if you ask me.
Could someone please tell me why we can’t use the wealthiest of the wealthy to pay off the national debt? I’m just learning about this issue and haven’t been able to find anything on that solution online. No need to bash me for the question, I’m not advocating an increase in taxes. I just want to understand.
Thanks!
Bush is spending time with his fan club
>>Could someone please tell me why we can’t use the wealthiest of the wealthy to pay off the national debt?
The rich already account for the vast majority of tax revenue, and paying off the debt is not even a big deal anyways. Our national debt today is actually smaller, as a percentage of GDP, than it was in the early 1990s. Or in 1950, for that matter.
Perspective:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/2/27/US_Public_debt_per_GDP_1791-2006.svg/697px-US_Public_debt_per_GDP_1791-2006.svg.png
i am going to pass out if i keep looking at that pic pick. oy alan
Well we can’t force the wealhiest Americans to pay off our debt. I’m using general figures here but the top 2% of our country, say 6 million people, would have to contribute about $15 million a piece as our national debt is $9.2 Trillion. Why would all or even any of them want to do that?
I’m sure that some of them are humanitarians but I don’t think they’re willing to be that generous.
Yeah, I think the Bush administration has been too comfy with the top 2% but I’d hate to go to an opposite extreme and over burden our wealthy citizens.
I feel some new taxes are in order and I trust the Obama presidency to spend it well.
I believe this war will end in a couple years after Barack takes office and that will put some money into our economy.
I see that green technology is very promising and Obama is a firm believer in leading the world with American green technology -what does that mean? It means better solar, battery, fuel economy technology. It means safer, cleaner nuclear and creating jobs by implementing these measures nation wide.
Brazil shocked the world by running their country on corn, America can do more by running ours on new technology.
The little I’ve read on it points to energy solutions I didn’t even realize possible. It’s amazing what we’re working on, but the Bush pittance will be replaced by an Obama well-funded initiative.
America needs to change and our economy will prosper but in order to embrace a promising new future we need to really reimagine how our country runs.
Good night everyone.
I’ll leave you with this thought, one day ships will launch missles into the middle east.
Ships by the name of the USS Clinton, the USS Bush, and of course the USS Obama.
Heh.
You know actually this photo is a pretty good metaphor for the state of the nation, the economy, the environment, and the ultimate fate of the human race.
No fate but what we make.
Oh, sure.
Thanks to Photoshop, people can now “go” anywhere.
The reason the wealthiest of the wealthy don’t pay off our national debt is probably because they don’t want to..should they be made to?…and of course, why?
Nice picture; Norway?
Corn isn’t all that great as an energy source.
Brazil uses sugar, it more efficient that
bio mass.
Stopping the Iraq War cold would account for $12 Billion a month. We could always start there.
This just in:
more than 43,000 troops found medically unfit for combat have been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan anyway.
Thanks a lot, RC. I’m about to have some kind of nervous breakdown. I just finished Zinn’s AMERICAN EMPIRE, and I’m 3 chapters into Alan’s RED, WHITE, AND LIBERAL. I’m being bombarded with information right now that’s showing me how corrupt members of our government can be… I can’t take anymore. It’s outrageous.
I’m going on vacation from politics and history before I snap.
God grant us the serenity to accept the things we cannot change, the courage to change the things we can, and the wisdom to know the difference.
“Human felicity is produced not as much by great pieces of good fortune that seldom happen as by little advantages that occur every day.” Benjamin Franklin
Why penalize those that haved achieved financial success? This is a capatalist society. The idea of penalizing the wealthy,or as Marx/Engles would say “the aristocracy” is classic communism.
I’m not saying “penalize” them. It’s just that the national debt is such a big deal to everyone. So I’m trying to understand, if it’s so important, why don’t we just
1. borrow the money from the wealthy
or
2. allow them to pay it, and then give them a tax break for “x” number of years until their taxes are equal to the amount of money that they contributed to the debt
I’m just throwing out ideas to help my brain understand the issue, that’s all. But it seems to me like we’re going to pretty much always be in debt. But then I don’t understand why everyone’s so concerned about it.
Thanks for the input provided thus far.
RC~ thanks for the nice quotes. I’m still about ready to snap, though. And Alan’s “pic pick” may be a great metaphor, but I’m scared of heights and so it’s scaring the hell out of me! :-)
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-04-30-watchlist_N.htm
How completely ridiculous, insane, and apalling
As for penalizing people, I think it’s like the Sicilians say: the Devil laughs when the poor give to the rich.
There is no F#@*ing way I would stand on that rock for more then 1/2 a second!
Dude, I would have never walked my ass on that rock.