Month: November 2012

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How to generate trillions in revenue over a decade:

• $3 trillion: Enact a modest financial transaction tax: 0.5 percent on the purchase of stocks (0.25 percent for the buyer and the seller) and tax bonds and derivatives at lower rates.

• $1.7 trillion: Millionaires and billionaires pay a lower effective tax rate than working people. Rescind the Bush tax cuts for the top two percent; tax capital gains at the same rate as income (money making money is still income).

• $1 trillion: Crack down on offshore tax shelters.

• $580 billion: End tax breaks for companies that ship jobs overseas.

• $500 billion: Establish a currency manipulation fee on China and other countries. The Economic Policy Institute has estimated that it would create one million jobs.

• $300 billion: Establish a progressive estate tax on inherited wealth of more than $3.5 million.

• $110 billion: End tax breaks and subsidies for profitable oil, gas, and coal companies.

• Many corporations pay little or no tax. End tax loopholes, subsidies, bailouts, giveaways, and other corporate welfare.

• Creates new tax brackets for incomes over $3 million with a top tax rate of 40 percent.

• End the carried interest loophole for private equity and hedge fund managers.

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Lesser of Two Evils

“someone spotted an open-air trailer near an early polling site in Goldsboro with President Barack Obama and other elected officials hung in effigy”

True story: Anyone I’ve had conversations with this month can confirm that until this morning I had not decided who I was going to vote for today. I despise the Obamacare mandate that much. I even told my 14 year-old niece I had not decided as of last night. This morning I read the the quote above in a news article about electioneering. It made up my mind. Sure, lots of people despised Bush but this has gone beyond comparison. The volume of hate coming from the right in this election has reached a point that may require therapy for many conservatives. I can’t be part of it.

So all of you who thought you were doing your cause any good repeatedly telling me how vile Obama is and that you’d like to see him “burned in the street” (Scotty) well, thank you. Any policy of Obama’s that I may have found harmful or offensive could not make me vote against him if it means reinforcing or supporting the persistent, vitriolic messages coming from Republicans in this election. It’s honestly made me question the sanity of many people I know. I realize it’s an odd factor to weigh my decision on but I’m not going to vote for the candidate that is the lesser of two evils. I’m voting for the segment of society that is proving to be the lesser of two evils.

This election has exposed the true sentiments of many Americans. We’re in trouble and politicians have nothing to do with it. Check yourselves. One man in one office did not put you where you are today, causing you such anguish. Another man won’t fix it either. Your GED isn’t going to turn into a college degree if Romney wins. Your old pants won’t fit no matter how many pairs you put on. If you lost your job Mitt isn’t going to hire you. These are your problems, not Barack Obama’s. It’s time for the party of “personal responsibility” to quit whining and exercise some. You can start by telling your fellow conservatives to quit burning scarecrows of duly elected officials in effigy.

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