zoombwaz
Radical Moderate Populist
And there never will be free-market capitalism in this ciuntry, because it doesn't exist. Like Marxism, it almost seems like a good idea, but when one examines it more closely, one realizes, "Holy shit, this can't work. It has no connection with the real world." That applies to free-market capitalism as well as marxism. There is no invisible hand of the free market. Sorry, Adam Smith, but your theory turned out, like all things invisible, to be imaginary (name one thing that actually exists that is also invisible, and before you answer, you should know that scientists have succeeded in photographing an individual molecule). Karl Marx: sory, bud, but the same goes for your "workers' paradise." Paradise doesn't exist. Now don't get me wrong, your expose of the evils of capitalism was right on the money. You are without a doubt an expert economic diagnostician, but...Jesus!!...your skills at prescribing an effective remedy suck! You have a combination of the economic and political versions of testicular and prostate cancer that has metastasized, so that the prick is killing the body, much like the pricks on Wall Street are kiling the body politic, and yet you prescribe not government controls to bring the assholes into line, but a whole new (ae's abilities and gets paid according to one's needs. If I may be so blunt, what the fuck were you thinking? that runs completely contrary to human nature, and ...what? there is no humam nature? only lies that we've been taught are human nature? Right. Well, here's why Marxism is forever doomed to failure: there are jobs necessary to the existence of any society which are either inherently dangerous and potentially deadly, or are just plain nasty and disgusting. You get these jobs done in one of two ways: by paying a pemium wage and attracting people to them, or forcing people to do them. One way I guarantee you wil not fill those jobs is via "from each according to his ability to eacvh according to his needs. There will be no volunteers. That's human nature and all the Marxist nurture in the world isn't going to change that.
And I'm not seeing any invisible hands in the market. No, they're plenty visible, and they belong to the same families of weasels who supported the Brits in the American Revolution, because they don't believe for a second that the common people are capable of self-governance, and that the monied and landed class should be calling the shots, since their wealth makes them inherently smarter, superior people, and more qualified to rule us as they see fit. Because of that attitude on the part of the top 1%, and their proven willingness to lie to achieve what they want. they will do what ever they can to weaken, co-opt, and ultimately topple the government of the people, by the people, and for the people, replacing it with an oligarchy, and they, not we, will be in charge, and we, not they, will be taxed. And they will find fools who will agree that they are being taxed too much, and they will continue to strip away all government control over the market which will allow them to engage in more predatory business practices, more collusion, more price fixing, more union busting, more looting the treasury. They don't want a free market. They want a captive market, and those who think they will play nice and let market forces do their magic, don't understand that these people are the market forces. Or maybe they do understand and think we don't. eitherr way, hey are in for a rude awakening when their dream free market never materializes.
And back to taxes for a second. Anybody who thinks the tax code is skewed toward the middle and lower classes, either is not paying attention, or thinks the rest of us aren't. There has been a massive transfer of wealth and income UP the economic food chain FROM the middle and lower classes TO the wealthiest 1%. Therefore, it is mathematically impossible for the tax codes to be skewed to ward the source of this transfer. In addition, it is disingenuous to talk only about the income tax, as it is only one facet of the whole tax burden, which falls disproportionately on the lower and middle taxpayers, who have been losing ground economically for the last eight years (stagnant at best), while the wealthiest (who create no jobs) are getting wealthier by leaps and bounds. Anyone who looks at that set of facts and concludes that the tax system favors the middle and lower taxpayers is innumerate. Yes, the top 1% pay 39% of all federal income taxes. So what? What percentage of their total income does that equal? Warren Buffett says he pays 15% of his income in federal income taxes. What percentage of his income does a person making $50,000 pay in social security/medicare payroll taxes? 7.65% How about a CEO making $50 million? 0.016% Federal excise taxes? bottom 20% pay 8% of their income, while the top 20 pay 1% of theirs. So let's see, even for a citizen who pays no income tax at all, the differential in payroll and excise taxes alone damn near make up for the wealthiest 1%'s income tax paid, and we haven't even touched on the most regressive tax of all, the state sales tax, where the lower and middle income citizens really get walloped.
