Taking Back America….
Across the Pond • Published 26 Dec 2011 09:30
4 Comments
A well-known street mantra of community organizing warns that" if you don't stand for something, you will fall for anything." Demonstrations by the disaffected working and middle class are sprouting like mushrooms in all American cities. Students seem to make up the bulk of the movement. As in all popular protests, students have the most to lose - their future.
The Take-Back Movement has an unclear agenda and unless they come up with a focused target they will, just like the Tea Party Movement fade into obscurity, irrelevance and ridicule. Such a waste of a really good movement.
Two per cent of Americans are considered wealthy and pay less taxes than the remaining ninety eight per cent of us. That is very unfair. Of course I am neither American, nor wealthy, but I do pay taxes and I resent being in a higher tax bracket than millionaires.
Money affects our daily lives. Mix a little politics with money and you can have unlimited power. That's a recipe for social unrest. No pitchfork wielding peasants advancing on the White House or Congress of course, but a national sentiment of exploitation.
The US House and Senate are controlled by big corporate donors and lobby groups. The Koch brothers who own America's largest private corporation understand this. If environmental, labour and tax laws affect your bottom line, just find the politician who controls these regulations and pay them off through anonymous corporate donations.
Corporate influence in politics is a sensitive subject, as both parties accept huge amounts of money to influence campaigns and legislation. Politicians from both parties are loathe to bring up the source of their money. Campaign donations are a sacred cow to both parties and are rarely mentioned in election debates.
To quote a Texas politician "don't ever mention rope in a family that's had a hanging". If you want to be elected, don't mention where your campaign funding comes from.
The United States has now pulled out from Iraq, which was a great move, considering we didn't belong there in the first place. Iraq is now free to descend into their ethnic and tribal feudalistic society with Iran picking up the pieces. Sunni, Shiite and Kurds will all start vying for power, until of course a Saddam Hussein replacement takes over.
No one likes a dictator, but they do tend to keep stability and order in a country. Promoting western style democracy in a region where that political system is totally foreign to them is not a good idea. Removing Monarchy, Mullahs, Despots and Dictators leads to endless civil war, which isn't in the west's interests.
As this year draws to a close governments in Egypt, Libya and Iraq have all been 'taken back' with Syrian president Bashar al-Assad hanging on by his bloodied fingertips. President Obama should have an easy re-election thanks to the motley crew of Republican candidates.
I won't be sad to see 2011 fade into history. Hopefully the New Year will bring us more sanity and peace in the World.
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GlobalScot
6 posts
Feb 21, 17:35
Report commentI was pretty shocked to read this article and his twitter feed is a real eyeopener - clearly "fraefiife" has no place being in the US. The complete lack of appreciation and understanding of the US living and mindset is breathtaking.
I have been in the US for almost 20 years. I made it my business to understand why the US exists and how the founding fathers created our REPUBLIC. The USA is not a DEMOCRACY as stated. The US thrives when capitalism works. The statements made regarding who pays the TAX etc are just WRONG.
To be clear:
The latest data shows that a big portion of the federal income tax burden is shouldered by a small group of the well off 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.
No when I hear the statement the the "Rich" - that would include me by the way pay a lower rate of tax that is offensive. I work and earn salary where I pay the highest rate of tax - yes, on earned INCOME. If I save some money after paying the max tax and invest it and i earn interest from that then I pay tax again on the interest - so...I am double taxed!
So.....lets hear no more of this left wing rubbish!
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Yes 7
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Sailor Bill
13 posts
Mar 16, 11:14
Report commentHello Global Scot and thanks for reading my Blog. The wealthy 2% of American tax payers pay less taxes proportionally than the rest of America. Why should a millionaire be in a lower tax bracket than a factory worker? The Far right (Republicans) were opposed to bailing out the automobile industry but not opposed to bailing out the Wall Street Bankers - that tells me where their true allegiance and agenda are focused. I did spend (20 years in the US Navy and contrary to your statement I think I have earned a right to live in the US. I am unsure what you mean by double-taxation. If I buy a car with my income (which is taxed) I also pay sales tax on it. Of course the same applies to a loaf of bread which also has tax on it. Global Scot doesn't understand the concept that everytime money is moved, it is taxed. Republican front runner Rommney understands that and has his money stashed away in off-shore and European bank accounts. We provide billions in tax subsidies to the oil industry. Is that a Capitalistic concept - of course not, they don;t need the money and they provide funding for Far Right Christian Evangelical who would like to drag us back to the 1930s.
The Left Wing Rubbish (your words) is focused on creating jobs, the economy, foreign policy etc. The Far Right Jerbels are focused on Guns, Gays and God and eliminating Rights for women in America. Obama is a shoe-in for re-election thanks to the bizarre candidates and nominee for the Republican candidate for Presidency - Go Obama....
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GlobalScot
6 posts
Apr 19, 20:30
Report commentYou are so totally miss guided!
The top 1 percent of income earners in the US pay over 40 percent of all federal income taxes, while the bottom 50 percent paid only 3 percent. Forty-nine percent of U.S. households pay no federal income tax at all. When somebody invests (such a buying in the stock market) they are using their income that has already been taxed - my case it works out at an effective rate of 25% of my NET pay. I am a small business owner (called an S corp), all my company earnings show as personal GROSS income - I can' remember the actual percentage but I think over 65% of workers currently employed work for small businesses like mine. I think the max rate for my higher earnings (anything over about $200K is taxed at 33%. Now when I want to invest what spare cash I have for my retirement then even though i have paid the tax on my earned income the investment income is taxed at 30% - SO IT"S TAXED TWICE. Now these figures are real and are just for Federal taxes. I have to pay FICA (like National Insurance), Workmen's Comp and State Tax. When I look at all the other taxes that my business pays it comes to about 68% of my top of the line (GROSS) earnings. Union people tend to be selective in their statistics. With any business there are costs (phone, salaries, fuel, insurance, repairs, heat, light, raw materials etc) - when this is all taken away from the top line what you have left is a profit and you pay tax on that. This where the low percentage comes from - ITS NOT FULL PICTURE. Basically as a percentage of the total income its low but as a percentage of what you can put in your pocket it's dam high. The guys that work for me totally understand this. Government workers or Unions guys don't want to understand it. My employees to want to grow, they want their own businesses - I started with nothing when I came to the US, I worked hard and now I have a bunch of employees and FYI they get FREE healthcare. This is the American dream that Obama doesn't understand. In the US for the last 100 years this has been the plan and it made the country prosper. Mediocrity/Fairness as promoted by Obama as an ambition is a recipe for total failure. The blunt facts are some people are better educated or work harder and they deserve more - isn't that fair? Under the Obama plan everybody has to be almost the same - unless that is you are a Government worker. Everything this guy has done is really against the American way of life. Even with his flagship law everyone's healthcare at best has to increase in cost or at worst become less effective.
To be sure I have no problem with anyone being a success or doing better than me unlike in the UK where if you do well you must be a crook of some kind. Anybody agree with me that if you make good choices, use your brain and have personal responsibility you might have a better chance of doing well? Your never going to be successful if you always have your hand out! In the UK it was just total wealth envy. hats is discussed while down the pub, by the way, I had more cash because I was still at work - that's why I left and came to the US. Too much tax and if too much theft. To be the best I could be I had to leave to come to the US. I have no envy of someone who does well but if we have anymore of Obama then he will drive us into the ground with his class warfare. If this continues, I will have no incentive to grow our business so I guess I'll close down - I'll be alright but my guys will be on the dole. I'm not going to risk any money or waste my time if there is no benefit. To make everyone the same is the basic foundation of Marxism - you see how that works. Makes the Goverment a modern day Robin Hood except the poor have the power and destroy the business climate.
Before I go, here are some things to think about.... since Obama came into office 3 1/2 years ago there are more people living in America but there are fewer people working. Real numbers not percentages. The Obama lefty policies just don't work. I travel a bit and see the same picture elsewhere. As soon as the left get into power and follow the policies that you seem to agree with a country becomes less prosperous. I see it in the US and I also saw in Brazil and Venezuela.
Just a few things to consider:
"Poor" people don't employ anybody.
Government spends other peoples money.
History shows that every time you increase tax, the incentive to work and earn more goes down and the net result is lower tax revenue to the Government.
When the Government is the biggest employer there is no external cash to pay for itself.
I believe there are makers and takers and when the takers exceed the makers we are all finished...anybody remember the USSR.
When the takers given unearned benefits - basically something for nothing you can never take it away. That alone will make it hard to get rid of Obama as the takers are his voting base. Hopefully, there are still some makers and thinkers here that can effect a change that everyone needs to believe in - we sure as hell need it now before Obama bankrupts this Great Nation.
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Sailor Bill
13 posts
Nov 10, 18:00
Report commentHello: After reading all this Classic Right Wing rhetoric I only have one question. Why are you doing business in the US?
Poor people don't employ anyone! (Your quote).... Of course they don't, they are poor.....
Four more years of Abama and then another eight of another Democratic Government.
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