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Buzz Mills

Buzz Mills

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IRS says rich getting richer:

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The richest one percent of Americans earned a postwar record of 21.2 percent of all income in 2005, up from 19 percent a year earlier, reflecting a widening income disparity among different classes in the nation, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing new Internal Revenue Service data.

The data showed that the fortunes of the bottom 50 percent of Americans are worsening, with that group earning 12.8 percent of all income in 2005, down from 13.4 percent the year before, the paper said.

It said that while the IRS data goes back only to 1986, academic research suggests that the last time wealthy Americans had such a high percentage of the national income pie was in the 1920s.

The article cited an interview with President Bush, who attributed income inequality to "skills gaps" among various classes. It said the IRS didn't identify the source of rising income for the affluent, but said a boom on Wall Street has likely played a part.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071012/bs_nm/irs_income_dc
 
No surprise here, and it won't change until there's a groundswell of anger in favour of more egalitarianism. Educating the poor would be a start, but it's advantageous for the rich that the underclasses remain largely ignorant.
 
Since they effectively have edged out middle class status now, this comes as no surprise. And the rich will continue to get richer...
 
SeriouslySearching said:
Since they effectively have edged out middle class status now, this comes as no surprise. And the rich will continue to get richer...
Click to expand...
I got off the bus early. Decided that I could coast the rest of the way. I never worried about where I could have been had I continued working, and I still haven't had to worry at all about where I end up. Don't need the worries.
 
SeriouslySearching said:
Since they effectively have edged out middle class status now, this comes as no surprise. And the rich will continue to get richer...
Click to expand...

yes, it was on the news tonight that this is the BIGGEST GAP EVER, between rich and poor.

Fortunately for me, I've been a beneficiary of the stock market, Keoghs, Ira's etc. but people have got to have something to invest in the first place!!!

Many in the middle class are struggling; of course probably many of us don't manage money well; not willing to give up the meals out, Starbucks, movies, etc.

I think there need to be tax incentives that begin to empower the middle class again, and also more reasonably priced products, like health care, for them.
 
Buzzm1 said:
IRS says rich getting richer:

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The richest one percent of Americans earned a postwar record of 21.2 percent of all income in 2005, up from 19 percent a year earlier, reflecting a widening income disparity among different classes in the nation, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing new Internal Revenue Service data.

The data showed that the fortunes of the bottom 50 percent of Americans are worsening, with that group earning 12.8 percent of all income in 2005, down from 13.4 percent the year before, the paper said.

It said that while the IRS data goes back only to 1986, academic research suggests that the last time wealthy Americans had such a high percentage of the national income pie was in the 1920s.

The article cited an interview with President Bush, who attributed income inequality to "skills gaps" among various classes. It said the IRS didn't identify the source of rising income for the affluent, but said a boom on Wall Street has likely played a part.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071012/bs_nm/irs_income_dc
Click to expand...

The gall of bush. What skill did he ever have other than being born into a rich, powerful family? He got to go to schools of higher learning because he a legacy student and his parents donated tons of money. That's the white people form of "affirmative action". Then he didn't really do much with it.

He knew daddy would get him anything he wanted and anywhere he wanted to get to.
His tax breaks to the rich and his oil wars and vetoing every little bit of help going the way to poor or middle class and letting the corporations get away with everything and anything is are the major reasons this gap is widening.

He has the nerve to put down others skills? There are so many smart, wonderful people in this country who would have done great had they had the life he was born to. If he was born to a poor family I bet he'd be sweeping the floors at McDonalds and he'd probably screw that up.
 
montana_16 said:
The gall of bush. What skill did he ever have other than being born into a rich, powerful family? He got to go to schools of higher learning because he a legacy student and his parents donated tons of money. That's the white people form of "affirmative action". Then he didn't really do much with it.

He knew daddy would get him anything he wanted and anywhere he wanted to get to.
His tax breaks to the rich and his oil wars and vetoing every little bit of help going the way to poor or middle class and letting the corporations get away with everything and anything is are the major reasons this gap is widening.

He has the nerve to put down others skills? There are so many smart, wonderful people in this country who would have done great had they had the life he was born to. If he was born to a poor family I bet he'd be sweeping the floors at McDonalds and he'd probably screw that up.
Click to expand...


:clap: perfectly said.
 
montana_16 said:
The gall of bush. What skill did he ever have other than being born into a rich, powerful family? He got to go to schools of higher learning because he a legacy student and his parents donated tons of money. That's the white people form of "affirmative action". Then he didn't really do much with it.

He knew daddy would get him anything he wanted and anywhere he wanted to get to.
His tax breaks to the rich and his oil wars and vetoing every little bit of help going the way to poor or middle class and letting the corporations get away with everything and anything is are the major reasons this gap is widening.

He has the nerve to put down others skills? There are so many smart, wonderful people in this country who would have done great had they had the life he was born to. If he was born to a poor family I bet he'd be sweeping the floors at McDonalds and he'd probably screw that up.
Click to expand...

Excellent post, montana!
 
It's the philosophy of the political parties:

Democrats believe that if you take care of the middle and lower classes, they'll prosper. In turn, they'll help out the upper classes by patronizing their businessess and spending their money, etc. - Just look at Clinton's economy.

Republicans believe if you take care of the rich, upper classes, they'll in turn take care of the middle and lower classes by giving them jobs, etc. The problem is, is that the rich only care about themselves, thus getting richer while the middle / lower classes hurt more. - Just look at Bush's economy.

So, thanks to Bush... the rich get richer and the little guys get screwed.
 
Bush: Protectionism will cost U.S. jobs

WASHINGTON - Alarmed by slipping support for free trade even among Republicans, President Bush is arguing that protectionism will cut Americans out of chances for more — and better — jobs. Bush has launched a blitz on behalf of pending free trade pacts with four nations. He continued the push Saturday in his weekly radio address. "More exports support better and higher-paying jobs," the president said. "And to keep our economy expanding, we need to keep expanding trade."

His radio address followed a speech on trade he delivered Friday in Miami. Bush also granted interviews this week to business-oriented news organizations.

Since Democrats took control of Congress in January, it has not approved any free trade agreements that the administration has negotiated, and it has allowed Bush's authority to negotiate future deals under expedited procedures to expire. Before lawmakers now are agreements with Peru and Panama, considered likely to pass, and with Colombia and South Korea, both seen as precarious. The deal with Colombia is in trouble over human rights issues and there is strong opposition to the South Korea agreement because of barriers erected by Seoul to keep out U.S. autos and beef.

The administration already has reached agreement with Democrats to include tougher language on protecting worker rights and the environment. But critics say five consecutive years of record U.S. trade deficits have played a major role in the loss of more than 3 million manufacturing jobs since Bush took office in 2001. "I know many Americans feel uneasy about new competition and worry that trade will cost jobs," Bush said. "So the federal government is providing substantial funding for trade adjustment assistance that helps Americans make the transition from one job to the next. We are working to improve federal job-training programs. And we are providing strong support for America's community colleges, where people of any age can go to learn new skills for a better, high-paying career."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071013/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush
 
montana_16 said:
The gall of bush. What skill did he ever have other than being born into a rich, powerful family? He got to go to schools of higher learning because he a legacy student and his parents donated tons of money. That's the white people form of "affirmative action". Then he didn't really do much with it.

He knew daddy would get him anything he wanted and anywhere he wanted to get to.
His tax breaks to the rich and his oil wars and vetoing every little bit of help going the way to poor or middle class and letting the corporations get away with everything and anything is are the major reasons this gap is widening.

He has the nerve to put down others skills? There are so many smart, wonderful people in this country who would have done great had they had the life he was born to. If he was born to a poor family I bet he'd be sweeping the floors at McDonalds and he'd probably screw that up.
Click to expand...

Our Founding Fathers did not intend for this to be the way of our Democratic Republic. Most know today, it becomes a bad and dangerous situation for all, to have a too large gap between rich and poor.

I'm sure in most thriving Democracies, there is a STRONG, HAPPY MIDDLE CLASS.
 
Marthatex said:
Our Founding Fathers did not intend for this to be the way of our Democratic Republic. Most know today, it becomes a bad and dangerous situation for all, to have a too large gap between rich and poor.

I'm sure in most thriving Democracies, there is a STRONG, HAPPY MIDDLE CLASS.
Click to expand...
without a middle class, to balance out the upper, and lower classes. there is so wide of a gap, between the remaining two classes, not only in money, but in the numbers. If you have 3%, of the population, that are wealthy, and 95% on the other end, things are going to change in a hurry. Either we begin living in a dictatorship, or there will be a rebellion, and the rebellion would definitely come first.
 
Buzzm1 said:
without a middle class, to balance out the upper, and lower classes. there is so wide of a gap, between the remaining two classes, not only in money, but in the numbers. If you have 3%, of the population, that are wealthy, and 95% on the other end, things are going to change in a hurry. Either we begin living in a dictatorship, or there will be a rebellion, and the rebellion would definitely come first.
Click to expand...

No; surely we don't want to go back to a monarchy, or worse, a dictatorship.

And I could say something really really N______y about this thought, but since it's not the PP I will . :silenced: :silenced:
 
montana_16 said:
The gall of bush. What skill did he ever have other than being born into a rich, powerful family? He got to go to schools of higher learning because he a legacy student and his parents donated tons of money. That's the white people form of "affirmative action". Then he didn't really do much with it.

He knew daddy would get him anything he wanted and anywhere he wanted to get to.
His tax breaks to the rich and his oil wars and vetoing every little bit of help going the way to poor or middle class and letting the corporations get away with everything and anything is are the major reasons this gap is widening.

He has the nerve to put down others skills? There are so many smart, wonderful people in this country who would have done great had they had the life he was born to. If he was born to a poor family I bet he'd be sweeping the floors at McDonalds and he'd probably screw that up.
Click to expand...

i must agree.....
 
Buzzm1 said:
without a middle class, to balance out the upper, and lower classes. there is so wide of a gap, between the remaining two classes, not only in money, but in the numbers. If you have 3%, of the population, that are wealthy, and 95% on the other end, things are going to change in a hurry. Either we begin living in a dictatorship, or there will be a rebellion, and the rebellion would definitely come first.
Click to expand...

you can bet on that.....
 
montana_16 said:
The gall of bush. What skill did he ever have other than being born into a rich, powerful family? He got to go to schools of higher learning because he a legacy student and his parents donated tons of money. That's the white people form of "affirmative action". Then he didn't really do much with it.

He knew daddy would get him anything he wanted and anywhere he wanted to get to.
His tax breaks to the rich and his oil wars and vetoing every little bit of help going the way to poor or middle class and letting the corporations get away with everything and anything is are the major reasons this gap is widening.

He has the nerve to put down others skills? There are so many smart, wonderful people in this country who would have done great had they had the life he was born to. If he was born to a poor family I bet he'd be sweeping the floors at McDonalds and he'd probably screw that up.
Click to expand...

There you go again, Montana, mincing words. Do try to say what you mean, 'k? (And once again, not that I disagree with a single word. :D)
 
And they also pay the majority of the taxes.

By the Numbers

96 percent of all federal tax revenue comes from half of all taxpayers.
53 percent of all federal tax revenue comes from the top 5% of all taxpayers.
3.5 percent of all federal tax revenue comes from the bottom 50% of all taxpayers.
44 million taxpayers are estimated to owe no federal income tax and will receive a refund for every dollar that was withheld from their paychecks over the past year thanks to the new 10 percent bracket.
Source: U.S. Internal Revenue Service

http://www.house.gov/garymiller/WhoPaysMostTax.html
 
The top tax bracket now is 35% It has been higher in the past; much higher like in the '50's, for the wealthy that is. There is NO tax on average estates now; even if it's been earning money in the stock market. If you inherit up to 4 million, no taxes on capital gains, interest, nothing. This is helping the RICH to get VERY RICH. (Note: I don't believe in taxing money that has already been earned and paid taxes)

Corporations and people like Warren Buffett get huge breaks - he paid 17%!! Even Warren says corporate owners like him should pay more.

I went to a financial meeting the other day, and evidently corporations have been more cautious with their spending (after the scandals such as Enron)

The Corporate coffers are very full; and that means they can start hiring more workers and perhaps paying benefits. That's the GOOD news. The bad news is they get far too many tax breaks and the CEOS are paid not only huge salaries, but in some cases EQUALLY AS MUCH IN BONUSES.

We have one of the lowest tax rates in the developed world, and half of ours must go to Defense. That leaves not enough for such a LARGE country to pay for infrastructure and other domestic needs.

A strong middle class is the most important force for a good Democracy. Shopping for clothing, food, appliances, etc. is much less than in our parents' day. Our mantra should not be: "no taxes"; it should be HOW ARE THEY SPENT? accountability has gone out the window.....

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21309318/

"Generation gap: After paying the bills, middle-class pockets are emptier"
 
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