Has America Jumped The Shark...

[LastGL]

Pass a National Sales tax like the FAIRTAX, and get rid of the IRS! All those American businesses with their money overseas would bring their money and business back to this country. ANYONE buying anything in this country would pay into our tax system, and the economy would bounce back. The only reason the politicians won't pass it is bcause it would take away power from them.

 

[DragonLady]

Back to the original poster's point.

Businesses (and yes, financial institutions are a business) should not be rewarded for bad business, i.e., making risky loans. If your small business goes under or you can't pay your mortgage, does anyone bail you out?

Of course, deregulation of said businesses should not have been done to begin with by those in the Grand Old Party. The problem with their economic theory is trickle down never trickles down. Rich people put extra money in their pocket, they don't re-invest it unless they have some incentive. Tax breaks for the rich are not an incentive to do anything but hoard money.

Consumers and small business drive the economy. When they hurt, everyone hurts. As we're seeing now.

 

[DragonLady]

Pass a National Sales tax like the FAIRTAX, and get rid of the IRS! All those American businesses with their money overseas would bring their money and business back to this country. ANYONE buying anything in this country would pay into our tax system, and the economy would bounce back. The only reason the politicians won't pass it is bcause it would take away power from them.

That last statement - never any truer words have been spoken.

I say triple the corporate tax for any American business moving operations offshore, but that's me. Bottom line, whatever removes their incentive for moving American jobs outside the country. It's not just taxes, its an effort to push down wages (and therefore increase profits, or so they believe - they always forget the overhead until its too late) also.

 

[Lindley]

Finally, create a blanket worker protection law providing a universal minimum guaranteed wage and protect the worker's rights in the workplace... and provide universal healthcare for everyone. Basic level service.

Worker protections in general, sure, but I'm not convinced the minimum wage is a good idea. Historically, raising the minimum wage merely tends to drive inflation, devaluing the dollar so that minimum-wage workers don't actually gain any buying power.

I can't say for sure what would happen without a MW, but it seems to me there must be a better way to make decent pay available to those willing to work for it.

 

[K'riq Sa]

Wiping out everyone's consumer debt would be irresponsible. It would essentially be a tax against retailers who provided you the opportunity to make payments, rather than a lump sum.

Let's us be irrisponsible for a change, come on, you, and me, together, in all our glorious irresponsiblity.

Unfortunately when people don't have to own up to their mistakes, they often repeat them. They learn nothing; things go just get someone to bail you out.

let's not and say we did, and can't we just learn something next time...

One of the reasons you can only declare bankruptcy once is to prevent people from getting into debt and then letting them off the hook so they can repeat the pattern.

what about the other 99% that it helped..

I had a $50,000 debt which I incurred, I was responsible for getting in over my head, so I had the responsibility of fixing it. It took me seven years of doing 2-3 jobs at a time to pay off the debt and to live within my means at the same time.

just think of where you'd be if someone had been their to help you? where would you be now...

One thing I learned, was I needed to be more careful about getting myself into the situation in the first place. Since eliminating my debt, I've always paid off every debt within the month.

now go forth and don't repeat it...

And since when did welfare go off-line; people have been collecting welfare throughout the 1990s and 2000s?

not off-line, just out of the general news. it would seem to me with the current climate we see more stories about general welfare info, how to apply, where to apply, how much to expect.and i watch the news alot and zilch...





K'riq Sa, Son of the Second Musician, Holder of the Yellow Snow of Betazed, Heir to the Crown of Coins of Great Ceaser's Ghost