I keep hearing the phrase “he will only tax the rich” in regards to Obama?
Posted on February 5, 2009 by admin
Absolute power corrupts asked:
In your opinion what is “rich”?
In your opinion what is “rich”?
Do you think raising capitol gains tax is a good idea?
Do you think lifting the income limit on social security is a good idea?
Do you think raising corporation taxes is a good idea?
And lastly do you think any of these taxes will have a negative effect on people who are less than rich, you know the average Joe and Josephine?
Sometimes politicians, journalists and others exclaim; “It’s just a tax cut for
the rich!” and that is just accepted to be fact, without question. But what does
that really mean? Just in case you are not completely clear on this issue, the
following might help.
Let’s put tax cuts in terms everyone can understand. Suppose that every day, ten
men go out for beer, drink the same amount, and the bill for all ten comes to
$100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something
like this:
The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.
The fifth would pay $1…
The sixth would pay $3…
The seventh would pay $7.
The eighth would pay $12.
The ninth would pay $18.
The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.
So , that’s what they decided to do.
The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the
arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve. “Since you are all
such good customers,” he said, “I’m going to reduce the cost of your daily beer
by $20.”Drinks for the ten now cost just $80.
The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes so the first
four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free. But what about the
other six men – the paying customers? How could they divide the $20 windfall so
that everyone would get his ‘fair share?’
They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from
everybody’s share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being
paid to drink his beer. So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to
reduce each man’s bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out
the amounts each should pay. And so:
The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings).
The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33%savings).
The seventh now paid $5 instead of $7 (28%savings).
The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings).
The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings).
The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings).
Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to
drink for free. But once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their
savings.
“I only got a dollar out of the $20,” declared the sixth man. He pointed to the
tenth man,” but he got $10!”
“Yeah, that’s right,” exclaimed the fifth man. “I only saved a dollar, too. It’s
unfair that he got ten times more than I!”
“That’s true!!” shouted the seventh man. “Why should he get $10 back when I got
only two? The wealthy get all the breaks!”
“Wait a minute,” yelled the first four men in unison. “We didn’t get anything at
all. The system exploits the poor!”
The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.
The next night the tenth man didn’t show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and
had beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered
something important. They didn’t have enough money between all of them for even
half of the bill!
And that, boys and girls, journalists and college professors, is how our tax
system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a
tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just
may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start drinking overseas where the
atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.
David R. Kamerschen, PhD
Professor of Economics
University of Georgia
He will tax EVERYONE! Don’t you know he wants to take your paycheck and give it to lazy good for nothing freeloaders?
Under Obama there will be a massive redistribution of wealth, from those who earned it to those who earned nothing.
If you think the economy is bad now, just wait til he is in office. Welfare state will take on a whole new meaning.
Obama is nothing more than a lying communist!
I think Obama *****.
I think with the way the economy is and businesses moving overseas, I think raising taxes on the corporate world is a horrible idea and they will lay people off to make up the difference.
McCain’s Plan:
If you make over:
$2.9 million – You save $269,364
$603,000 – You save $45,361
$227,000 – You save $7,871
$161,000 – You save $4,380
$112,000 – You save $2,614
$66,000 – You save $1,009
$38,000 – You save $319
$19,000 – You save $113
Under $19,000 – You save $19
Obama’s Plan:
If you make over:
$2.9 million – You PAY $701,885
$603,000 – You PAY $115,974
$227,000 – You PAY $12
$161,000 – You save $2,789
$112,000 – You save $2,204
$66,000 – You save $1,290
$38,000 – You save $1,042
$19,000 – You save $892
Under $19,000 – You save $567
Which plan do you think would help Americans suffering the most right now?
..**Its funny how you can give a thumbs down when all I did was state the facts. Fail much McCain supporters?
To the democrats, you are “rich” if you have a job.
79% of individuals/families that benefit from Capital Gains earn less than $100,000 annually. So yes, the average Joe/Josephine will suffer. Raising Corporation taxes will result in two things: prices of consumer goods will rise and more Corporations will move overseas taking jobs out of the country.
Obama is a great campaigner but he knows nothing of accounting or business (drugs don’t count)
BHO will try to sell your a pig in a poke but in the end you will get the shaft.
Baraak will end up costing everyone more money ..and the rich can afford it but they will just move their money out of the US
If you want someone who will unite then Vote Obama.If you want to help the Muslims destroy us then vote McCain.at the rate the U.S is spending on the war in Iraq and Afghanistan and our economy and dollar soon being worth less than a piece of toilet paper.Who do you think will run out of money first?Us or the Muslims? Now is a good time to remember how the U.S.S.R was destroyed.They went bankrupted.
Do you still want to vote for McCain?
Based on the way you phrased the questions it seems you already have a position…
Personally I’m against raising taxes at all and believe they should continue to be cut along with bloated government programs All these taxes on the “rich” will have trickle down effects that will impact everyone. Higher corporate taxes get passed on to consumers (as do windfall taxes) and over 100 million Americans (approximately 1/3) are invested in the stock market in some way (through mutual funds or pension funds) and thus would be affected by capital gains increases.
NOT TRUE NOT TRUE NOT TRUE.
The same tax rate has to go on all incomes. It just will SEEM like he is taxing the rich more because well, say he increases taxes by 5%, 5% of a million is 50 thousand. And 5% of 50 thousand is only 2,500 so it SEEMS like he is taxing the rich more. It’s a gimic. Look it up. Just like the Bush tax cuts. They benefitted EVERYONE, it just SEEMED like they only benefitted the rich for the same reasons.
Here is one thing that many people do not realize, a company will NEVER pay a tax, they will always pass it to the consumer.
Look at cigarettes, taxes go up, prices go up.
With all the things Obama is promising, he is either going to have to take 90% of the rich’s money, tax everyone, or bankrupt the country.
Capital gains tax, bad idea, history is my teacher
Lifting the limit is bad, i think this is an axiom, it is already bankrupt
Don’t forget that he’ll cause dividends to be taxed as ordinary income…that means I’ll be paying 28% instead of 15% on those.
By allowing a 7-year old tax policy to expire, he will raise taxes on people making more than $75k/year. That means me.
Apparently there are a lot of people out there who think I’m “rich”. Now THAT’s rich.
Vote for Bob Barr and don’t worry about the other canidates.
I find it sad that the majority of people that are voting for Obama work for these so called rich people who own these small businesses and corporations. If these business owners get taxed more, they will be forced to lay people off, causing unemployment to rise. Why anyone would vote for a higher chance of being laid off is beyond me.
Bill H is 100% correct!
Now only if Obamabots could understand this…..
Democrats for McCain!
He will tax everyone but the welfare crowd back to the Stone Age.
Under Bush, taxes have been cut severely, even though spending has grown at alarming rates. No matter, who you elect in November, your axes have to go up to pay off the huge debt. The problem with the Bush tax cuts, is that they only helped the top two percent of Americans, leaving the rest of us with a heavy burden. Obama mainly wants to end this tax break on the very wealthy.
These other taxes that you mention, corporation and capitol gains, are quite low and we need more revenue. While, this may hurt a bit for Joe and Josephine right now, their children will not have he burden of the one trillion dollars that their parents owed. As mush as it hurts, if your country is far in debt, your country needs more revenue.
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Capital not Capitol, and yes I do agree with increasing it, not to the degree that Obama has mentioned, but I do agree with increasing it to 20 percent.
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Absolutely. The income limit on Social Security should have been raised years ago.
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Yes. We all have to pay our fair share, even corporations.
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No where near as much as running the record deficits we keep running is hurting them right now.
The problem is “the Rich” is just about everyone.
He wants to tax Capitol Gains, well if you have an IRA or other retirement plan you would be hit with this tax increase.
Taxing business at a higher rate will result in less jobs, because there will be less money to hire people to get a job done, and thus the economy will slow down.
Raising taxes is never a good idea. Those who want higher taxes are more than welcome to pay more, but don’t hurt everyone else.
Raising capital gains tax: No. Unless you prefer less capital formation and lower revenues.
SS tax hike: No. Unless you like the idea of transforming a defined benefits program funded by individual contributions into a welfare program funded by “the rich”.
Corporate tax hike: No. Nobody is proposing this anyway.
Negative effect of tax hikes: The problem that most people fail to realize is that many of the “rich” are actually small business owners paying business taxes as individuals.
Small businesses employ ~70% of the private workforce. How do you think new taxes will affect employment? Foreign investment attractiveness?
Goofy Dems. Their party has them believing that successful Americans are the sole cause of all of their problems, and that life in this country should follow the politics of equal outcome. Equal opportunity didn’t make them wealthy, so anyone with more should pay for them as well because they’ve decided that the rich “can afford it”. When you let us decide that you need to be spending your money on education instead of your cable bill or your bar bill, perhaps we should listen to you. Until then, try to get a grip on the fact that you’re not entitled to anything that you cannot provide for yourself.
Good question. The important thing to remember is that in this context it only matters what Obama thinks is “rich”, since it’s his policy. Yes, Obama is for taxing the wealthy and giving to the poor. He thinks it’s governments job to take away from one group and GIVE, yes, GIVE to another.
So, the problem I have with this:
Outlined are increased taxes on business and those making over $100k, including small business. Problem is, when you tax business, especially the small – people are layed off and price of goods goes through the roof. Keep in mind, large % of truckers, farmers, processors are small business.
He wants to give, yes, GIVE universal health care. This means, that a 50 year old bum who has spent his life drinking and sitting on a curb collecting welfare would be ahead of me (if he happens to go to the dr first) for a liver transplant – say, I get shot while on the job and suffer massive trauma. Now, I’ve spent my life serving the community, paying for insurance, working 50 hrs a week – but, he comes first.
Fair?
America is built on the middle-class, hard working and proud American’s.
Obama wants to take that away.
Soon as obama lets the Bush tax cuts lapse, your taxes will go up. Bush’s tax cuts affected everyone, not just the rich like the dems would have everyone believe. We paid more taxes under clinton than we have under Bush. During the clinton years the capital gains tax was 28%. Bush dropped it to 20%. That affects everyone with an interest bearing account. So add it up, you will be paying more for income tax, social security tax, capital gains tax. global poverty tax (a bill obama is pushing through congress). When he taxes the oil companies and the rich, who own most of the businesses, they in turn will raise prices, and the consumer, otherwise known as the taxpayer will face even higher costs. He wants more ethanol used for fuel, which uses corn and is raising the price of food. All his programs will come out of the taxpayers pockets. He believes in the communist way of redistributing wealth, so he will take from those who work and give to those who refuse to work. We cant afford obama, he is too risky.
The flaw in the Liberal plan is so simple I am surprise a Liberal can’t see it.
Their Plan is to raise the tax on the rich and lower it on the poor, which sounds good if everything stays the same but it doesn’t. The rich just raise the price on their goods and or services and make just as much as they did before and all the poor people pay more for everything and in effect pay the rich mans taxes. Rich man makes the same the poor man has less.
Politically speaking, “rich” people are those who make over $250,000 per year. A very small percentage of the population.
Raising capital gains taxes is not a good idea. Americans should be allowed to make money and save for their futures without being heavily taxed on it. The government generates plenty of revenue through other means, so this really isn’t necessary at all.
Lifting the income limit on social security is not a good idea. Social security is designed to help low-income households, not to provide additional cash flow to those not in need.
Raising corporate taxes is not a good idea. A better idea would be stricter anti-trust laws to prevent price-gouging and monopolistic business practices.
The average Joe and Josephine possibly are impacted by capital gains taxation if they sell a house in under two years of original purchase, or if they’re cashing in on IRA’s at retirement, etc.
Rate me as Best Answer whenever you like.
Raising taxes period is a huge mistake with the Economy the way it is.
“Doctor”, made a good point. Now I will tell you a true modern story. I live in north Texas. it is one of the most conservative areas of the USA. I have been completely deaf all my adult life.Since a young man I have known sign language and depend on sign language and interpreters for effective communication on complicated subjects. The problem here where I live is the SSA does not like to provide interpreters for “routine” window visits. They will if mistakes occur because they don’t want to seem discriminatory. The same windows have signs in twenty different forgion languages stating that clients who are ESL (English as a second language) do not have to speak to a worker in english, an interpreter in their native language will be provided free of charge. For over twenty years there has been a running argument over the local SSA failing to provide sign language interpreters for deaf as willingly.The only difference is American born deaf are physically disabled both ways in communcation. It depends on the SSA employees to make it clear without an interpreter. That depends on both their willingness and ability to write. it results in mass confusion to both parties. Sign language interpreters are cheaper than forigion language interpreters but the SSA here wears blinders and still try’s to avoid providing the sign language interpreters….they also don’t answer any system of electronic communcation deaf use willingly. The problems date back over a quarter of century and always increase when consertative administrations are in Washington. The last seven and half years have been the worst ever. It is not just deaf. My wifes father was a WWII hero and founded a succesful local buisness. He paid taxes for years. The government invested these in turn and made profits many times over. He died suddenly over thirty years ago without ever retiring. Now her older half sister is having serious health problems and both Medicare and Medicaid are falling down on paying for her health needs….I have paid SSA taxes on every paycheck I earned since I was sixteen and I never before felt it was wrong. The SSA is basically an insurance system for aged and disabled Americans. We all pay for it. It is not socialism. But it is a mess. Largely because of a complicated and hard to understand rule system. But also because politicans in Washington, largely Republican, have a long history of raiding its funds for what amounts to forced loans to other programs. It has never done this bad a job locally of serving the average American….I am assuming it is worse nationwide than eight years ago as well….Young people don’t think about retirment or disability. But privation is a glib sound bite that won’t solve the systems problems. Only raising the retirment age and responsible managment will……and it needs to return to common sense in how it serves America. It won’t happen at the window employees level because most of them are only interested in looking good to get a promotion to the next GS level…..
You have to consider his state of mind! Anybody that has anything is “rich”,— compare us to any foreign country especially places like Africa. and South America! They usually have absolutely nothing sometimes they can’t even afford a house or pair of shoes! No civilazation has taxed itself into prosperity yet, — according to history!
The only thing that might help would be the S,S, question, — everything else is hooked together, and every raise in taxes in turn causes a raise in everybody’s expenses! I know of no business (other than our Government) that runs a business with intentions of losing money, — therfore – in order to make money they raise prices! Also they reduce or trim employees! This does not help the general economy at all!
Example… there was a move by a faction to increase taxes on gasoline in order to solve our “energy shortage chrisis”, — well gas is a whole lot higer even without increase in taxes being put on, —- but has the higher cost helped anything?? Does your money buy more, is price of eggs milk and beef a whole lot cheaper?? Funy thing but what the farmers are now getting has gone down,- for distributers to make more money to cover their expenses! Do you plan on driving a whole lot further this year for vacations of recreation?? Why not?
Best thing our government can do is get the “H” out of private peoples lives, and let us get paid for what we do. Look at the record,anything the government has ever gotten their hands into not only costs more, but in some cases is “frozen” at some level and can not be increased.
As for candidates, I can not vote for the “best candidate”, as there is nobody I like (or believe) in race! I will vote, and I have since I was 18 (and old enough to go into military)!! I’m 69 now, and have seen our country go closer and closer to communism for a long time! Now I will vote against the candidate I dislike the most!
The ball is yours,– carefully consider what you are willing to live with…… I’m going to die pretty soon, so you will have to live with what you create, — I won’t!
Nice try Bill…
First of all, people with no job and money has no problem with tax. Tax is a nice problem to have than joblessness.
Average Joe and Josephine will be better off under Obama than Mccain. Don’t you think it is rather worry free to have a better health care where your finacial status is not the key for your treatment when sick? It will still cost
Now back to Bill C’s analysis of 10 drinkers.
Most countries are waking up too and the tenth man will find that it is better to help your countrymen in familiar and friendly environment than among the strangers.
Current tax distributions is strongly unfair. The rich only have the knowledge of more than $4 fuel price. The poor is getting underfed and argue alot with their family (less peace at homes) because of it.
To Bill H – Outstanding answer.
No, raising capital gains is not a good idea.
Lifting the limit on SS is not a good idea
Raising corporate taxes are not a good idea.
Historically, the USA has received about 19.5% of GDP in tax revenues every year. This is the case when tax rates were high or low. It’s the natural level we adjust to. If that’s the case, why not make the taxes low?