Study: Bush Tax cuts proven to be a total failure.

[Divinus Arma]

Yay. Fun! Let's get to it.

Why oh why, my good freind Divinus, according to author Niall Ferguson, author of War of the World, is the Bush government borrowing so heavily from the Chinese World Bank?

The Government bonds you speak of are open to the world market. The fact that China is investing is not so much an indicator of our need for cash as it is their confidence in our currency. When a foreign investor purchases U.S. securities, they are buying the security in U.S. Dollars. They are doing this because they have confidence in the strength of the U.S. Dollar as a stable investment. The fact that China's currency is pegged to the U.S Dollar means that the Chinese investor can not possibly lose money in the deal, but they stand much to gain in later selling U.S. Dollars and buying other currencies.

With all these revenues coming in from the corporate world (made greatly possible by the use of oil price gouging, the exportation of US jobs to foriegn markets and, not to mention, the use of illegal immigrant labor), why do we need to borrow capital from Asia?

Again, we are not "borrowing from asia". Asia is investing in the United States, confident in our economy. If our economy was crap and the dollar was really tanking, then the Chinese would be buying Euros, the world's second most stable free-floating currency.

EDIT: As for "oil gouging"- the price of oil and gasoline is based on the futures market. You'll notice that the price of oil from OPEC is taking a huge dive. OPEC. The very folks who want to rape the U.S. Their is no "gouging" going on. This is Democratoc political spin. I can procide further clarification if you need me to.

As for Exportation of US Jobs to foreign markets: As Pape and I discussed a few months back, the exportation of jobs has an additional benefit to the UNited States that goes unnoticed. On the U.S. current account, it shows that we have a trade deficit. This does not include U.S. companies that invest in manufacturing plants abroad (it shows foreign manufacture by a U.S. company for reimportation as a deficit, rather than a domestic product, even though all investment and profits originate and return to the U.S.- a major flaw in the system.). These plants send money overseas, and then bring the products and profits back home. The company sees a gain in profits, which can then be used to (a) reinvest internally within the firm to expand operations anywhere in the U.S. or world (b) provide dividends to shareholders- which are then spent or reinvested within the U.S., again creating wealth at home. This ties dirtectly into the importation of cheap labor, which I am totally against,

The United States needs to revitalize and expand opportunities for education. Our level of technology has made a high school education virtually wothless in the modern global marketplace. Workers MUSt create value for themselves to be employed. EMPLOYMENT IS NOT A RIGHT. The individual has the responsibility to educate himself andmett the needs of the modern marketplace. This is no different from somebody working their ass off on a farm to feed their family, it's simply a different type of work. The U.S. Education system needs to be reformed to increaser efficiency through competition. We need better public schools, and the only way to do that is through private school competition. Evidence of this has been shown in the u.S. postal system, which has improved tremendously since competition from fedex and UPS increased.

I guess were supposed to just bend over and keep paying our middle class taxes, while rich oil company execs retire with 400 million dollar retirment packages made possible through the reduction of personal income taxes on the wealthy.

Two points: (1) The rich do not stuff their money under a matress. They reinvest the money which creates jobs and powers economic growth. Furthermore, there is not a limited supply of money in the world. This is the beauty of capitalism- everyone can get richer and noone suffers from it. (2) Executives are far more skilled then somebody digging a ditch and so add greater value to the company and to the country's economy. Just like a Doctor is paid for his or her expertise, we value those that contribute to what our culture demands.

I am an advocate for a flat tax rate BTW. Everybody pays 10% and gets no tax loophles or returns. We would be rolling in the doe if there just weren't any loopholes.

Totally agree. But did you know that the current tax regiome actually favors the poor? Four the last Seven+ years of my military career I paid ZERO in taxes, thanks both to the Bush Tax cuts and the tax code. My taxable income was never more than $25,000 a year. But yet I paid NOTHING every year. So I personally know who the tax code favors, and it is the poor thank you very much. a 10% flat tax would make the poor pay their fair share. Why should they get a break just because they are stupid or lazy?

I am also against welfare except for those who are in desperate need, such as many of the elderly in our country. Not the lazy, mind you, but those who need a helping hand up

.

I am fine with aiding the mentally and physically disabled, who have come to their situations at no fault of their own. If you chose to be a manager of McDonalds, that is your own damn fault.

[Xiahou]

Well said DA. I was going to add more, but after reading thru what you said I concluded it'd be redundant.

Is the increase in tax revenue offset by the increased amount of money that the government is spending on corporate outsourcing? So in effect is the increased tax base because an even larger portion of government money is going to corporations?

Are you suggesting that increased government spending has soley accounted for enough economic growth than when taken back in as tax revenue that the two are equal?

[Ironside]

Well said DA. I was going to add more, but after reading thru what you said I concluded it'd be redundant.

Are you suggesting that increased government spending has soley accounted for enough economic growth than when taken back in as tax revenue that the two are equal?

Well, an extra 2,8 trillion dollars has to go somewere...

Give me some quality papers saying otherwise (I'm content with papers saying were all that money went) and I've to admit that Bush has been successful on one thing atleast.


Oh, and to only pay off the increased interest, you'll need about 127 billions in increased tax revenue