The Weekly Poll
Results
The 'Shut up and Pay up' Edition
Hillary Clinton struck a strong populist chord while wading into territory secretary of states rarely go last Thursday: Domestic policy... "The rich are not paying their fair share in any nation that is facing the kind of employment issues [like the U.S.] - whether it's individual, corporate or whatever the taxation forms are," ...
I think we can all agree that corporations are getting off easy, tax-wise, but what about 'rich' individuals? Two questions:
1.) What is your definition of 'rich' for an individual/family?
and
2.) What do you think their 'fair share' in taxes should be?
A slow week... But, some interesting responses... Have at it, then...
MD sent...
Anyone with a car is rich
(Hmmmmm... Even if they have to live in it?)
DRD threw himself right into it with this discourse...
The answers to both questions asked is in the eye of the beholder. A person earning $40,000 is bound to envy the person making $200,000 just as that person would envy a person earning $5,000,000. As to how much tax is enough: When the progressive income tax was started it was supposedly factored on what it took to live. Whatever formulation was used it worked very well for the vast majority until the tax-cutters came to power. As planned, they have almost drown us in the bathtub by starving the treasury to death!!!
This is the most important issue to be raised by anyone of stature in decades! I was not aware that she had made such an astute observation, and then had the balls to voice it! The world-wide so called shortfall of funds can be placed squarely where it belongs, at the feet of the tax repealers in all political parties of the earth! To illustrate this point, just the funds lost from the two Bush tax cuts would certainly go a long way to wiping out all of our current debts. Then go all the way back to the Raygun Revolution and include all the lost revenue from lower rates on the upper levels and, presto!, we have such a surplus we have a tax holiday for a period of time or pro-rate a sizeable rebate for each taxpayer to enjoy as they see fit!
Sadly, the push today is in the opposite direction; do away with the safety-net programs of Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, student loans, Pell Grants, the postal service, the Education Department, and so on! But, God forbid the mention of war costs even be whispered in your sleep. The reason for that is simply an indication that protecting property is more important than the general welfare of the people! (As well as Ike's admonition re: the M-I Complex...)
All these tax cuts for the upper earners were sold under the guise that they would take the savings and invest in more jobs. Well, they did, in China, Mexico, India, and the nations of the Pacific Rim. As any person with common sense understands, they not only shifted all the debt to working class wage earners at the same time they lowered wages and shipped the rest of the jobs to off-shore locations on our dime!!! The same scenario played out in all the other industrial nations and here we are, broke and without a pot to piss in or a window to throw it out of!!! Bob, these are the jewels of questions facing us!!
Thanks for asking them! (Yer welcome, Don...)
Adam in NoHo was 'hot on it' too...
1- Despite what a bunch of fuck-heads living beyond their means Angelenos think, 250k a yr is rich. Very rich. At this rate, I'd say that any household pulling down more than 150k is rich. I, for one, would have no trouble paying all of my bills and saving the leftover on 150k a yr. No one else should have any trouble, either. Hell, I could probably afford health insurance on that. A household income of 40k or less is poor and living with debt they will never pay off.
2- If we went to a graduated Flat Tax where in ALL income above 40k by
corporations & individuals is taxed without deductions for kids, houses,
medical expenses, etc, I'm willing to bet that the top rate would be 15%
or less. But everyone has to pay, NO EXCEPTIONS, beyond the 40k cutoff.
I'm pretty sure we could afford everything we wanted to buy as a nation on that, including a Single-Payer Health Insurance System.
ehiebert averred...
definition of rich > $500,000
Fair share taxes 50% of income over $500,000. They should pay the average American tax ~ 17% for the first $500,000.
Richard McD. simply stated...
Hilary is right on the money
~~~~~~~~~~~
Hmmmm... What is 'rich'? For me, I guess it's like what that Supreme court justice said about pornography. He couldn't define it, but knew when he saw it. That's kinda how I feel... I like the taxation ideas put forth by Adam and ehiebert. A compromise there would be appropriate, I feel... In the interest of full disclosure, I do not pay any income taxes to anyone on my VA service-connected disability compensation. No veteran receiving the same does either, that I'm aware of. I do not feel badly about that fact... So, there it is...
Thanks to those who responded... Yer the Best!
BadToTheBoneBob
~~~~~~~~~~~
New Question
The 'Falling on Her Sword' Edition
I don't believe an introduction is needed for this question...
Should Helen Thomas 'un-retire' and write for another news service such as The Nation or The Progressive?
Send your response to
Recommended Reading
from Bruce
The Soviettes: Rarities
Liza Donnelly: Cartoon
Paul Krugman's Blog: Lost Decade, Here We Come (nytimes.com)
Utter folly posing as wisdom. Incredible.
Paul Krugman's Blog: Madmen In Authority (nytimes.com)
Rereading my post on the folly of the G20, it seems to me that I didn't fully convey just how crazy the demand for fiscal austerity now now now really is.
The key thing you need to realize is that eliminating stimulus spending, while it would inflict severe economic harm, would do almost nothing to reduce future debt problems.
Connie Schultz: We're in a New York State of Mind -- Sort Of (creators.com)
Looks as if Ohio and New York have something in common, and it's not coveting the future career of LeBron James. We care about kids. And we cared about them in the same week.
"Spring, Heat, Rains: A South Indian Diary" by David Dean Shulman: A review by John Leonard
In "Spring, Heat, Rains: A South Indian Diary" (Chicago, $25), David Shulman -- born in Iowa, transplanted to Israel, a despairing peace activist, "heartsick philologist," and professor of Humanistic Studies in the Department of Comparative Religion at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, needing "to reinvent myself" -- leaves the Middle East for Andhra Pradesh in the spring of 2006 and would rather never return.
Nathan Heller : Why We Love "The Shack" (slate.com)
How a self-published novel that envisions God as a zaftig African-American woman has sold millions of copies.
"The Whale: In Search of the Giants of the Sea" by Philip Hoare: A review by Nathan Weatherford
Philip Hoare's account of his "search [for] the giants of the sea" is part travelogue, part history, part scientific discourse, and part elegy, all blended into a wonderful melange.
Peter Gabriel: 'It doesn't have anything to do with witchcraft!' (guardian.co.uk)
Peter Gabriel's bleak new album of cover versions has divided fans and the featured bands. He tells Jude Rogers about Radiohead's reaction - and why he's releasing music each lunar cycle.
Rosanna Greenstreet: "Q&A: Katie Melua" (guardian.co.uk)
'My guiltiest pleasure? Cheese.'
Rob Fitzpatrick: Joe Perry on how Aerosmith patched it up (guardian.co.uk)
Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry has quit the band in the past, and singer Steve Tyler's future with the band was uncertain until recently. So what brought them back from the brink?
Christine Toomey: The great Dali whitewash (timesonline.co.uk)
Voyeur, exhibitionist, rogue... Salvador Dali was all of these, though the heirs to his estate would rather we forgot.
Russell Brand: This charming man (guardian.co.uk)
He's the arch seducer who is settling down; the BBC renegade who is hot property in Hollywood. Everyone loves Russell Brand - but not half as much as he loves himself, finds Emma Brockes.
Greg Braxton: Pam Grier looks back on blaxploitation (latimes.com)
The "Coffy" and "Jackie Brown" actress says, "At the time some people were horrified."
From The Creator of 'Avery Ant'
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Sunny and warmer.
"Retired"
Helen Thomas
Veteran White House correspondent Helen Thomas retired on Monday after coming under fire for controversial remarks about Israel.
The retirement of the 89-year-old Thomas, the longest-serving reporter in the White House press corps, was announced by Hearst Corp., where she worked as a newspaper columnist.
Thomas, who served for decades as the White House correspondent for United Press International (UPI), apologized last week for the remarks she made about Israel during a May 27 "Jewish Heritage Celebration" at the White House.
Asked at the event by the website RabbiLive.com whether she had any "comments on Israel," Thomas replied: "Tell them to get the hell out of Palestine.
Helen Thomas
115 Hours Sets World Record
Phil Laak
Poker star Phil Laak halted the longest poker game in history at 115 hours early Monday, nearly two days longer than the current mark recognized as the official world record.
The 37-year-old pro began playing at 12:00 pm local time last Wednesday at the famous resort and quit at 7:00 am on Monday saying he still felt fine but didn't want to "do any more damage to my body than necessary."
The previous official record, 72 hours and 2 minutes, was held by Larry Olmsted set at the Foxwood casino in 2004, but in poker circles the unofficial record -- not sanctioned by Guinness but still part of lore -- is Londoner Paul Zimbler's 78 hour, 45 minute stint last September.
Laak is the boyfriend of Academy Award nominee Jennifer Tilly, an actress who in recent years has also become a poker professional.
Phil Laak
Family Values
Kids
A new study pubished in the journal Pediatrics has concluded that children of lesbian couples are better adjusted socially and academically than children from traditional families. The study followed 78 children conceived by sperm donor to lesbian couples over 20 years, and monitored the children's well-being through a series of interviews and surveys that ended when the children turned 17.
Teens of the lesbian couples also displayed less rule-breaking and aggressive behavior than those from traditional families, the study found.
About 40 percent of the teens said they had been stigmatized at some point for having lesbian parents, but the study's author, Dr. Nanette Gartrell, told U.S. News and World Report that there were no psychological differences between the kids who said they had been stigmatized and those who hadn't. She said that the deliberation involved in the preplanned pregnancies may well account for the well-adjusted nature of kids raised in lesbian families.
Gartrell's findings pose difficulties for opponents of gay marriage and adoption, who have often maintained that gay parents adversely affect the development of the children they raise. But opponents of the gay-rights movement are in turn dismissing the study. Several gay-rights advocacy organizations helped fund Gartrell's research - and critics say the study is biased as a result.
Kids
Kris Kristofferson
Kris Kristofferson will help celebrate the 50th anniversary of Tootsie's Orchid Lounge, a landmark Nashville honky tonk.
The country music icon and actor will headline a Nov. 7 show at the Ryman Auditorium, across the alley from the back door at Tootsie's.
Hundreds of country music's biggest stars have slipped out the back door at the Ryman to play and party at Tootsie's over the years. Artists like Porter Wagoner, Dolly Parton and George Jones could be found there on Saturday nights after Grand Ole Opry performances.
Today it's one of Nashville's top tourist attractions. It was spared in last month's record flooding.
Kris Kristofferson
Hot Property For Cable News
Eliot Spitzer
Eliot Spitzer became a national punch line after he resigned in disgrace as New York governor, following a prostitution scandal.
Two years later, he's a hot commodity in cable television news.
Executives at both CNN and MSNBC have talked to Spitzer about jobs hosting programs on their networks. The increasingly visible former governor had a handful of test drives, most recently last week when he filled in for Dylan Ratigan for an hour in the afternoon at MSNBC, and he's a frequent guest on news networks.
"He's got personality, he's got smarts, he's got an edge and he's got enough controversy about him that the name means something," said Frank Sesno, a former CNN Washington bureau chief and now a professor at George Washington University.
Eliot Spitzer
Breaks Silence With Pigboy Sub
Rand Paul
Republican U.S. Senate candidate Rand Paul said Monday that Washington lawmakers are showing no consideration for future generations with deficit spending that is passing an "enormous burden of debt" on to America's children and grandchildren.
Paul made the comments during a friendly interview on conservative talk radio, breaking his silence weeks after his negative statements about the U.S. Civil Rights Act set off a political firestorm.
Paul also touted a proposal to require lawmakers to balance the federal budget in the interview with George Mason University economics professor Walter E. Williams, who served as guest host on the Rush Limbaugh Show.
The small-town eye doctor had retreated from the national scene after his May 18 GOP primary victory, when he suggested that government should not require private businesses to serve minorities.
Rand Paul
US Military Detains
Bradley Manning
The Army has detained a 22-year-old soldier in Baghdad in connection with the leak of a military video that shows Apache helicopters gunning down unarmed men in Iraq, including two journalists, defense officials said Monday.
Army Spc. Bradley Manning of Potomac, Md., now being held in Kuwait pending the results of an investigation, was the third suspected leaker known to have been apprehended under the Obama administration.
A convicted computer hacker from California claimed he alerted authorities about Manning after meeting him online, calling the young military analyst "a good kid who got a little mixed up."
Army spokesman Lt. Col. Eric Bloom said Monday that Manning has not yet been charged with any crime. He said it wasn't possible to predict how long Manning would be held in confinement without charges being brought.
Bradley Manning
Hearing Delayed Until July
Charlie Sheen
A hearing on a possible plea deal for Charlie Sheen in his domestic abuse case in Colorado has been delayed until next month.
Lawyers met Monday at the courthouse, with prosecutors saying they needed more time to work out the agreement.
Pitkin County Chief Deputy District Attorney Arnold Mordkin didn't elaborate.
Yale Galanter, a lawyer for Sheen's wife Brooke Mueller Sheen, says Sheen had reached a deal to plead guilty to a misdemeanor assault charge.
Charlie Sheen
Missing Iranian Turns Up
Daryush Shokof
German police say an exiled Iranian artist and filmmaker has turned up in Cologne after being missing for nearly two weeks.
Cologne police spokesman Andre Fassbender said Daryush Shokof was found completely drenched near the Rhine river late Saturday night.
Fassbender said Monday that the 55-year-old Berlin resident was taken to a hospital but is in stable condition. He said police are looking into the case but can give no details yet.
A committee of Shokof's friends said in an e-mail Sunday night that Shokof apparently had been kidnapped, but Fassbender said that is speculation and he would not comment.
Daryush Shokof
Criticize White House, Democrats
Progressives
Progressive activists who helped elect Barack Obama president complained on Monday that the administration and congressional Democrats have been too timid and too willing to compromise.
Even though Obama's major first-term achievement - an overhaul of the nation's health care system - passed without a single Republican vote, progressive leaders who gathered in Washington criticized the president for failing to create a government-run insurance option to compete with private industry.
They faulted Obama for the ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the slow pace in repealing the ban on gays serving in the military and last year's economic stimulus package, which they described as inadequate at $787 billion. They also criticized his handling of the Gulf oil spill.
Although leaders still spoke with admiration for Obama, it was clear he's not as popular with unions, bloggers and other progressives.
Progressives
440 Medical Pot Shops Ordered To Close
L.A
Around 440 self-described medical marijuana dispensaries across Los Angeles were under orders to close on Monday, nearly five months after city officials voted to shut most of them down.
An estimated 135 dispensaries may remain legally open as of Monday as a new city law formally takes effect. City leaders hope to eventually whittle that number down to 70 and confine them to mostly industrial areas, away from schools, parks, libraries and churches.
Responding to residents who complained that many of the shops were catering more to recreational pot smokers than patients, the Los Angeles City Council voted in January to limit the number that could operate to between 70 and 187.
Since the city council passed its law, a statewide voter initiative that would legalize the possession and sale of marijuana has qualified for the November ballot in what supporters have called a "watershed moment" for their cause.
L.A
Speed Camera Foe Buys Police Website
Bluff City, TN
After a Tennessee police department let its website expire, the site was snatched up by a new owner - a man who uses it to gripe about traffic cameras that issue speeding tickets.
Computer network designer Brian McCrary says he discovered the Bluff City Police Department site was up for grabs, so he paid domain provider Go Daddy for the rights to http://www.bluffcitypd.com
McCrary, who says he received a $90 speeding citation earlier this year, took over the site May 22.
His site now shows a smiling cartoon police badge clutching green currency. It also posts gripes from others who've been cited.
Bluff City, TN
Discovered In Northern England
Gladiator Graveyard
Dozens of headless skeletons excavated from a northern English building site appear to be the remains of Roman gladiators, one of whom had bites from a lion, tiger, bear or other large animal, archaeologists said Monday.
Experts said new forensic evidence suggests the bones belong to the professional fighters, who were often killed while entertaining spectators.
Most of the skeletons were male and appeared stronger and taller than the average Roman, with signs of arm-muscle stress that suggest weapons training that began in the men's teenage years.
The team investigating the remains said that one of the best clues was carnivore tooth marks found on the hip and shoulder of one of the skeletons.
Gladiator Graveyard
In Memory
Himan Brown
Himan Brown, the creator of some of the biggest hits from the golden age of radio, has died. He was 99.
He created a number of radio programs that became immensely popular in the 1930s and '40s. Among his most well-known offerings was "Inner Sanctum Mysteries." The show opened with a signature sound effect of a creaking door.
Brown died Friday. He is survived by two children, two grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
Himan Brown
In Memory
Marvin Isley
Marvin Isley, the bass player who helped give R&B powerhouse the Isley Brothers their distinctive sound, has died at a Chicago hospital. He was 56.
Isley stopped performing in 1996 after suffering complications from diabetes that included a stroke, high blood pressure, the loss of both legs and use of his left hand.
He joined his brothers' band in 1973. By that time, the Isley Brothers had established themselves with hits like 1959's "Shout," which sold more than 1 million records. Isley splintered off to form Isley-Jasper-Isley in the 1980s and returned to the Isley Brothers in the 1990s. The group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992, and their career has spanned six decades.
At one point there were five Isley brothers in the group, including Marvin. Today, only Ronald Isley is touring full time after a three-year stint in federal prison for tax evasion.
The group's hits included "Twist and Shout," later recorded by The Beatles, "Love The One You're With," and the Grammy-winning 1969 smash, "It's Your Thing."
Marvin Isley
In Memory
Stuart Cable
Stuart Cable, the former drummer with the British rock band Stereophonics, has died at the age of 40.
South Wales Police say Cable was found early Monday at his home in the town of Aberdare, 165 miles (265 kilometers) west of London.
The force says the cause of death has not been determined, but there are no suspicious circumstances.
Cable co-founded Stereophonics with singer Kelly Jones in the early 1990s. The band had a string of British top 10 hits, including "Have a Nice Day."
Cable left the group in 2003 amid reports of conflicts with band mates.
He recently formed a new band, Killing for Company, and worked as a broadcaster, with a show on BBC Radio Wales.
Stuart Cable
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