Bush is soaking the rich!

[Chappy 138]

new data from the US Treasury. In 2005 the 'richest 1 %" in this country paid 39.5% of all the income taxes in collected.

The richest 5% paid almost 60% and the richest 10% paid over 70%!

Now for comparison, the richest 1% is defined as those earning over $350,000. The richest 1% earned 22.7% of all income earned.

Wait, did I just hear that they make 22.7% of the income but pay 40% of all the income taxes? Surley that cant be right! Bush gave them all a huge tax cut, didn't he?

The top 5% earn around $175,000

Want to know how much the lowest 50% pay in income taxes. this is everyone below the median income level of $50,000. A whopping 3%!!!

I thought Bush was screwing the poor. Giving all the tax cuts to the rich. The rich pay more tax now than ever before!

want to see the economy die? Take away the tax cuts for the rich!

[Scott Stone 604]

The beauty of america is you can make your own future. If you are worried about how someone else is treating you, you are worried about the wrong thing.

I have been broke, and i have had a bit of money. I prefer ot have a bit of money, even if it does mean 60 or 70 hour weeks.

As for the "lousy economy" You are either out of your mind, or have not looked a tteh statistics. Your personal eceonomy may be lousy, but the country as a group is doing great. Lower taxes and salaries are rising faster than inflation. Just because you can't compete does not mean that your boss should have to pay more taxes.

[MMI Enterprises 289]

Am from the economy is doing aok side. Am indifferent and make my own way as long as they stay out my business. Am not for bashing or taxing the corporate world as 'we the people' are the corporations. It is where all our monies and investments are so never attempt to double tax yerself is my motto. Am for small to mid sized goobermint and taking care of our own. Am not for a dorko woman that excepts indisgressions in her own camp for her own gain. Am for the principle behind self defense but not mythical self defense. Am for bringing them home and turning around and going back if need be or turning things to glass.. :)

The stupid thing about trying to place red tape and taxation on the upperclass is that they are more suited to just buy their time and not pay or spend. Hence us littler folk do end up taking up the slack. No blaim though but for the dems inability to see it. Consumption based taxation is better then personal exemption based taxation without equal and fair representation....yea I know.. am not understandable but to myself..lol :)

[Doug Dahlke 114]

Some of you may remeber the "Luxury Tax" from a few years back. The libs were going to stick it to the rich by raising sales tax on luxury items. Yachts were one of those luxuries. When the tax went into effect guess what those evil rich people did? They didn't buy any yachts. There was a very good yacht industry in the north east that went bust and people who weren't rich lost their jobs.

When government raises taxes on corporations do you think they just take that extra expense off the bottom line? Heck no, they raise the cost of thier products to make up the difference. Who buys the products? In many cases we do. So when I tell my senator to raise taxes on auto manufactures, or gas companies, or any company that produces goods or services I buy I am the one who will end up paying.

The more the government stays out of the economy the better off the economy will be.

[yazbird8 17]

Big business is so corrupt it's deeper than your ability to conceive it. Whomever holds the power holds the money and whomever holds the money holds the power..........Big business even controls the way you view them...It's corruptive force is the reason for incredibly low wages. It's true that big business creates lots of work for the working class. But it's also true that they have the ability to set wages thru collusion. If people's wages were much higher then they are now imagine how much more money would flow into the consumer market. The economy would explode, social programs would cease to exist (almost), and democracy would be more moral, more equitable, and more liberating to all, not just the lesser among us. There would be a much lesser need for social programs. It's not so much a Republican/Democrat issue, but they do sleep with currupt big business .....I found the article (shown below) very enlightening. It also supports what I've always believed to be true.

There are also some great graphs and charts (that I can't attach) if you go to this website...........Please read below

Who Rules America: Wealth, Income, and Power

Another way that income can be used as a power indicator is by comparing average CEO annual pay to average factory worker pay, something that Business Week has been doing for many years now. The ratio of CEO pay to factory worker pay rose from 42:1 in 1960 to as high as 531:1 in 2000, at the height of the stock market bubble, when CEOs were cashing in big stock options;. It was at 411:1 in 2005. By way of comparison, the same ratio is about 25:1 in Europe. The changes in the American ratio are displayed in Figure 6.

Figure 6: CEOs' pay as a multiple of the average worker's pay

It's even more revealing to compare the actual rates of increase of the salaries of CEOs and ordinary workers; from 1990 to 2005, CEOs' pay increased almost 300% (adjusted for inflation), while production workers gained a scant 4.3%. The purchasing power of the federal minimum wage actually declined by 9.3%, when inflation is taken into account. These startling results are illustrated in Figure 7.

Figure 7: CEOs' average pay, production workers' average pay, the S&P 500 Index, corporate profits, and the federal minimum wage, 1990-2005 (all figures adjusted for inflation)

Source: Executive Excess 2006, the 13th Annual CEO Compensation Survey from the Institute for Policy Studies and United for a Fair Economy.

If you wonder how such a large gap could develop, the proximate, or most immediate, factor involves the way in which CEOs now are able to rig things so that the board of directors, which they help select -- and which includes some fellow CEOs on whose boards they sit -- gives them the pay they want. The trick is in hiring outside experts, called compensation consultants, who give the process a thin veneer of economic respectability.

The process has been explained in detail by a retired CEO of DuPont, Edgar S. Woolard, Jr., who is now chair of the New York Stock Exchange's executive compensation committee. His experience suggests that he knows whereof he speaks, and he speaks because he's concerned that corporate leaders are losing respect in the public mind. He says that the business page chatter about CEO salaries being set by the competition for their services in the executive labor market is "bull." As to the claim that CEOs deserve ever higher salaries because they "create wealth," he describes that rationale as a "joke," says the New York Times (Morgenson, 2005, Section 3, p. 1).

Here's how it works, according to Woolard:

The compensation committee [of the board of directors] talks to an outside consultant who has surveys you could drive a truck through and pay anything you want to pay, to be perfectly honest. The outside consultant talks to the human resources vice president, who talks to the CEO. The CEO says what he'd like to receive. It gets to the human resources person who tells the outside consultant. And it pretty well works out that the CEO gets what he's implied he thinks he deserves, so he will be respected by his peers. (Morgenson, 2005.)

The board of directors buys into what the CEO asks for because the outside consultant is an "expert" on such matters. Furthermore, handing out only modest salary increases might give the wrong impression about how highly the board values the CEO. And if someone on the board should object, there are the three or four CEOs from other companies who will make sure it happens. It is a process with a built-in escalator.

As for why the consultants go along with this scam, they know which side their bread is buttered on. They realize the CEO has a big say-so on whether or not they are hired again. So they suggest a package of salaries, stock options and other goodies that they think will please the CEO, and they, too, get rich in the process. And certainly the top executives just below the CEO don't mind hearing about the boss's raise. They know it will mean pay increases for them, too. (For an excellent detailed article on the main consulting firm that helps CEOs and other corporate executives raise their pay, check out the New York Times article entitled "America's Corporate Pay Pal", which supports everything Woolard of DuPont claims and adds new information.)

There's a much deeper power story that underlies the self-dealing and mutual back-scratching by CEOs now carried out through interlocking directorates and seemingly independent outside consultants. It probably involves several factors. At the least, on the worker side, it reflects an increasing lack of power following the all-out attack on unions in the 1960s and 1970s, which is explained in detail by the best expert on recent American labor history, James Gross (1995), a labor and industrial relations professor at Cornell. That decline in union power made possible and was increased by both outsourcing at home and the movement of production to developing countries, which were facilitated by the break-up of the New Deal coalition and the rise of the New Right (Domhoff, 1990, Chapter 10). It signals the shift of the United States from a high-wage to a low-wage economy, with professionals protected by the fact that foreign-trained doctors and lawyers aren't allowed to compete with their American counterparts in the direct way that low-wage foreign-born workers are.

On the other side of the class divide, the rise in CEO pay may reflect the increasing power of chief executives as compared to major owners and stockholders in general, not just their increasing power over workers. CEOs may now be the center of gravity in the corporate community and the power elite, displacing the leaders in wealthy owning families (e.g., the second and third generations of the Walton family, the owners of Wal-Mart). True enough, the CEOs are sometimes ousted by their generally go-along boards of directors, but they are able to make hay and throw their weight around during the time they are king of the mountain. (It's really not much different than that old children's game, except it's played out in profit-oriented bureaucratic hierarchies, with no other sector of society, like government, willing or able to restrain the winners.)

The claims made in the previous paragraph need much further investigation. But they demonstrate the ideas and research directions that are suggested by looking at the wealth and income distributions as indicators of power.

[MMI Enterprises 289]

So Yaz you apparently think it matters how much a ceo gets compared to the rest. What does all the ce salaries in America add upto anyways compafred to the national budget or what is spent daily oversees in warfare. If a corporation makes money it's shareholders make money and that is where the bread is buttered for us all. We are the corps... we are good.. we are not the milking goobermint, we are not the thousands upon thousands of fed and state employee that live off us by way of double taxation. We hire more so they can milk us more effectively. Yaz, that corp info is interesting and all but you got to come to see that your retirement and everyones retirement you know depends on all them little folks working under that ceo to want to be that ceo and for that ceo to succeed not just over his competitors but over that which would milk dry what he builds. The enemy is never corporate America. Just a thought...

oh hey, this version on tgs is way weak compared to ptstates version. Phil would have all our heads for sure if he allowed in here.. : George bush giving all our money to the rich!!!

[CareyS1960 14]

Example.............Say Your wife worked for a major company for 31 years....She was promised a Pension....31 years ago ( are you with me ? ) Her Company didn't have a 401k plan and the Company goes into bankrupycy..They take her Pension...40% of her pay.....Her CEO gets a 21 billion dollar bonus.....her new management team gets a 30% pay increase......and we are not working at a fast food resturant here but a Major Company......Your wife is the front line employee....she cries and your budget is hurting......It's not her fault..............Your Government is at fault.......and you condone this behavior ? You must be living in a bubble ..........This government sucks the life out of us and you should be drinking their koolaid......Infact...You are............hope the fires don't hit you in the Ass................................

[MMI Enterprises 289]

Yes Carey. ..yer goobermint being to blaim is about right. Where I part ways is looking at the wife as the low person on totem pole or the victim. She could very likely have been invested in said company to point of profiting off all them bad business things that went down whether it was goobermint induced or corporate induced. Her profits in one area could be higher as shareholder than her loss as employee.Yes corps have to be kept in check along with goobermint and but mostly we the people have to be kept in check at how we view and treat our own bread and butter. Never vote for taxes on corps or companies that produce things and that you could own share in. If it a company that is in business to screw us out of more taxes or cost us more in red tape then that would be no good. But that is what people do all the time. They invest where and with whoemever is better at attracting them via image and dollars they can earn them. Why invest in a soaking wet broke farmer when you can invest in a law firm or bank that does the soaking? Heres an idea, invest in bankers and lawyer that only soak foreign entities and invest in American production.

[Jeff 232]

Yes Carey. ..yer goobermint being to blaim is about right. Where I part ways is looking at the wife as the low person on totem pole or the victim. She could very likely have been invested in said company to point of profiting off all them bad business things that went down whether it was goobermint induced or corporate induced. Her profits in one area could be higher as shareholder than her loss as employee.Yes corps have to be kept in check along with goobermint and but mostly we the people have to be kept in check at how we view and treat our own bread and butter. Never vote for taxes on corps or companies that produce things and that you could own share in. If it a company that is in business to screw us out of more taxes or cost us more in red tape then that would be no good. But that is what people do all the time. They invest where and with whoemever is better at attracting them via image and dollars they can earn them. Why invest in a soaking wet broke farmer when you can invest in a law firm or bank that does the soaking? Heres an idea, invest in bankers and lawyer that only soak foreign entities and invest in American production.

Love the new way you write & speak kev...... Goobermint, funny chit man. Oh or did you have a stroke or something

[MMI Enterprises 289]

ahh yer just starting to listen o'le boy.. do a search (by post) and see..lol

[Mountain View 14]

.

and al gore ( the big liar who said he invented the internet ) and the father of another great lie ( global warming ) did not win the election....but once again bitter people who are sore losers like you will hold on to whatever you can and blame everyone else for the worlds ills.

I'm no fan of Al Gore, but this kind of talk accomplishes nothing. Al Gore never said he invented the internet, he said he was partly responsible for bringing the internet into the public domain(along with other members of Congress). He is not the "father" of global warming; an advocate for that point of view but hardly the father. Calling Hilary "Hiltery" and Obama "Osama" doesn't say much for that side of the politcal spectrum either. The Dems are no better wailing on about Bush's intelligence and conservative talk radio. The biggest thing all of us can do is to educate ourselves and vote in the primaries. It seems only the ideological partisans vote in the primaries and we are left with the lesser of two evils in the general election.

We get the government we deserve.

[Chappy 138]

Calling Hilary "Hiltery" and Obama "Osama" doesn't say much for that side of the politcal spectrum either. The Dems are no better wailing on about Bush's intelligence and conservative talk radio. The biggest thing all of us can do is to educate ourselves and vote in the primaries. It seems only the ideological partisans vote in the primaries and we are left with the lesser of two evils in the general election.

We get the government we deserve.

Do you mean perchance these? The Gallery of 'Bush = Hitler' Allusions

Oops, didnt recognize the name of a conservative in the bunch.

[Mountain View 14]

I guess you overlooked the part where I said the Dems were no better.

[Jeff 232]

I guess you overlooked the part where I said the Dems were no better.

He didnt over look it, he chose to ignore it. That Jon guy watch out for him, he's trouble

Jons going to get his someday. He's going to punch the wrong ticket in 2008 elections and not realize it until it's to late. His one wrong wote is going to put Hitlerry clinton in the White house, then he's going to have a heart attack yelling its a hanging chad, I want a recount. Jon stay home in 2008 election, I dont want you to get sick WHEN THE DEMS WIN THE WHITEHOUSE & THE MAJORITY IN THE CONGRESS:lgwave:

[Babyjon 14]

Your Governmnent Loves you!!!

So Do Corporations that take jobs and Send them overseas, and also pollute puposely and our Government which "Hates" pollution fines them your kid has leukemia and they get a "fine" sounds like the EPA is really on your side how many millions can they lose??? How many kids you got?? The EPA loves putting the stick to the little guy we cant afford it!!

Kennedy Shot himself He felt so bad about wanting to end the Federal Reserve and have Congress Coin Money and Do away with the CIA

Pearl Harbor Was a Complete Surprise?

No Syphilis was handed out in Tuskegee!!

The numbers might never lie But people do all the Time.

The Economy is good on Paper but the Dollar is Losing Value.. The world Bank expects to devalue it to Equal the average World currency. before 2010

Money is moving makes the Economy look good It is all pennies not Dollars.

Is all this True??? Weel I didint hears it on Fox.

Owned by Rupert Murdock Look up this guy and what his world view is!! I dont think Fox is really all that fair and balanced!!

I read books, some were printed before color television and then compared it to todays events and guess what?? same players same results.

There are those who will make it no matter what they will switch sides sell out or sabotage others do whatever it takes to win.

Bush isnt Soaking the rich only the semi rich the wealthy the Rich will be Just fine I worry about the guy down the road. Whose job closed up and went to Mexico what happens when all the jobs go to Mexico or some other country. We Will find other job but what about the in between what baout the things you lose because to some corporation money is more important than his nation and countrymen and what about the government who allows this to happen freely with no consequences. We buy more junk than anyone else in the World. why doesnt our Government stop the coming in so our businesses can compete. One reason is it isnt about competition Its about power and control. Its about who controls the money controls. People within our Government benefit is this so new we act like this has never happened in before it is our History. Corruption and evil is the Norm. No way will the government step in they put corporate interest over the interest of the people which I believe Mussolini called that

fascism or better he thought to call that Corporatism.

[slightmold 64]

Bravo.............. very well said...............

[Chappy 138]

He didnt over look it, he chose to ignore it. That Jon guy watch out for him, he's trouble

Jons going to get his someday. He's going to punch the wrong ticket in 2008 elections and not realize it until it's to late. His one wrong wote is going to put Hitlerry clinton in the White house, then he's going to have a heart attack yelling its a hanging chad, I want a recount. Jon stay home in 2008 election, I dont want you to get sick WHEN THE DEMS WIN THE WHITEHOUSE & THE MAJORITY IN THE CONGRESS:lgwave:

I think you forget, it was the democrats that had a fit about the hanging chads. In a long time democrat run county. with a democrat supervisor of elections. But because it was one of the richest counties in the state we let them whine and sue and then the supreme court, in their wisdom said the law was the law and stopped the rediculous recount and gave, no, Appointed GW. THE SUPREME COURT APPOINTED BUSH!!! THere, I said it. and now he's soaking the rich with his obscene tax reductions. Bush is personally escorting illegal aliens across the border. He is banning unions from helping the poor working class. I hate him! I hate him.

Vote Hillary in 2008. Socialism for all mankind.

[MMI Enterprises 289]

Where is McCarthy when we really need him?:lgbounces: