Obama has not proposed any new taxes on anyone. He will simply allow the Bush tax cuts on the rich to expire. So taxes they would have paid 7 years ago would start up again. These will affect those making approximately $250,000.00 and over, and those would see rates grow from 35% to 38% on only the amount over the $250,000. For the slow among us, taxes do not affect what you already have. And it is entirely reasonable to believe that anyone making above a quarter million a year might have a few bucks in the bank; there are very few entry level jobs starting at that level. So the rich will pay a slightly higher percentage on the money that they do not yet have, after taking huge advantage the last few decades of the numerous tax breaks and loopholes afforded them to grow their fortunes.
Since the population in this tax bracket is miniscule, what are the majority of Republicans up in arms about? In her recent documentary “Right America, Wronged America”, Alexandra Pelosi (yes, you-know-who’s daughter) followed the McCain campaign bus from rally to rally, interviewing attendees. At one point, there is a plumber in an on-its-last-legs truck, with a sign on the side calling Obama a socialist. Near tears, he explains how he does not want his money taken from him and given to the man that only wants to work 2 or 3 days a week. Even after it was explained to him that was not the case, and that he would be in the group benefiting most, he remained in denial, not wanting to hear more.
Since the Reagan administration, we have been saddled with the “trickle-down” economic belief that the rich would somehow use that wealth to create jobs and grow the middle class. In the past, I would have referred to it as a theory, but it no longer deserves even that status. Expecting the rich to “spread the wealth around” is like asking Rush Limbaugh to turn down a cheeseburger. (By the way Rush, dieting is slimming. Wearing black isn’t). We have put our future in the welcoming arms of the upper class, and now have nothing to show for it. Brainwashed Republicans can cry out for smaller government all they want, but an intelligent White House is needed now more than ever.
America is not, and never has been, the land of equal rights. We were drastically behind many developed countries when it came to legal equality for women and African Americans. What we have been is the land of equal opportunity to get rich. No matter your color, creed or gender, if you could act, run fast or hit a baseball, we made you rich. If you could guess right in the stock market or lottery, we made you rich. It didn’t even matter if what you were good at was illegal. Hell, we made Jesse James a folk hero.
But work hard for a living, and we can make no promises. Be a great teacher, and we’ll let you pay bills, but no more. History is littered with accounts of the real labor that went into the building of our nation, and those workers were often left with little or nothing to show for it, while the Rockefellers and Vanderbilt’s had far more than they would need in a hundred lifetimes. Certainly they had admirable business ability, and are worthy of the recognition they have received, but is it more warranted than the very labor those fortunes were built on?
It should be easier in this country to make a living, and harder to make a fortune. And with the massive transfer of wealth this country has seen over recent decades, it will take a Robin Hood to get it done. For those not wanting their money to go to those not working, it is time to realize that 1. More than likely, no one is taking your money, and 2. There’s a good chance you will be getting some of it. And considering that most fortunes are passed down from previous generations, when was the last time you saw a rich person work? Do you really have an issue taking an extra 3% from Paris Hilton?
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