Tax the Rich!!!

[BrokenR1 0]

Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100.

If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:

The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.

The fifth would pay $1.

The sixth would pay $3.

The seventh would pay $7.

The eighth would pay $12.

The ninth would pay $18.

The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.

So, that’s what they decided to do. The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve.

‘Since you are all such good customers,’ he said, ‘I’m going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20. ‘Drinks for the ten now cost just $80. The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes so the first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free.

But what about the other six men – the paying customers? How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his ‘fair share?’ They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody’s share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer.

So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man’s bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay. And so the fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings). The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33%savings). The seventh now pay $5 instead of $7 (28%savings). The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings). The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 ( 22% savings). The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings).

Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to drink for free.

But once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings. ‘I only got a dollar out of the $20,’ declared the sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man,’ but he got $10! ”Yeah, that’s right,’ exclaimed the fifth man. ‘I only saved a dollar, too.

It’s unfair that he got ten times more than I!!

”That’s true!!’ shouted the seventh man. ‘Why should he get $10 back when I got only two? The wealthy get all the breaks! ”Wait a minute,’ yelled the first four men in unison. ‘We didn’t get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!!! ‘The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.

The next night the tenth man didn’t show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important.

They didn’t have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill!!!!!

And that, boys and girls, journalists and college professors, is how our tax system works.

The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start drinking overseas where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.

For those who understand, no explanation is needed.

For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible.

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Rap is to music what etch-a-sketch is to art.

[dreamdancer 0]

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Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer.

sounds a bit gay...

stay away from moving propellers - they bite
blue skies from thai sky adventures
good solid response-provoking keyboarding

[BrokenR1 0]

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Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer.

sounds a bit gay...

Are you hitting on me?

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Rap is to music what etch-a-sketch is to art.

[quade 3]

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For those who understand, no explanation is needed.
For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible.

And for those that believe the original post is a valid analogy, I have some swamp land in Florida I'd like to sell you.

quade -
The World's Most Boring Skydiver

[Amazon 7]

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Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer.

sounds a bit gay...

Whats that... the taste of rich guys ass that the TRICKLE downers are kissing in hopes of a little trickle????

[BrokenR1 0]

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For those who understand, no explanation is needed.
For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible.

And for those that believe the original post is a valid analogy, I have some swamp land in Florida I'd like to sell you.

No, it's not swamp land! You just say "land"!

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Rap is to music what etch-a-sketch is to art.

[SkyDekker 1,123]

The rate didn't change the total "tax" payable changed. Which is something that never really happens in your system.

New payments would be:

First four men still pay nothing.

The fifth pays $0.80

The sixth pays $2.40

the seventh pays $5.60

the eight pays $9.60

the ninth pays $14.40

The tenth pays $47.20

Same ratios, but a lower overall tax burden for all.

Which is exactly how your tax system does NOT work.

No wonder your country is going bankrupt.

[kallend 1,623]

That is:

(a) Extremely old (first documented publication was in March 2001), and

(b) Stupid.

The reason the rich pay more in taxes is that the rich have more money to begin with. The wealthiest 1% own roughly 40% of the nation's wealth, and relative to the rest of us are getting wealthier with every passing year.

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

[diverborg 0]

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That is:

(a) Extremely old (first documented publication was in March 2001), and

(b) Stupid.

The reason the rich pay more in taxes is that the rich have more money to begin with. The wealthiest 1% own roughly 40% of the nation's wealth, and relative to the rest of us are getting wealthier with every passing year.

I'm probably in the wealthiest 50% (i really don't know, just guessing since I'm about as middle class as they get), and my wealth continues to grow each year through managing my money properly and working my ass off. Is it not fair that anybody that works for it regardless of income level can still grow their wealth?

Why should I care if the wealthiest 1% are getting wealthier?

Lets say I get 5% of a wealth pie among a handful of people from broke to uber rich.

If the size of that wealth pie doubles over 10 years (a theoretical but realistic figure), should I be upset if I now only get 3% of that pie and the richest in the group are getting a bigger cut.

I'm still wealthier than I was before. Or should I be angry that somebody is getting more than me regardless of how much I have?

[dreamdancer 0]

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should I be upset if I now only get 3% of that pie and the richest in the group are getting a bigger cut.

this is the group that crashed the financial system and got us to bail them out...

stay away from moving propellers - they bite
blue skies from thai sky adventures
good solid response-provoking keyboarding

[champu 1]

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Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100.

$1, $3, $7, $12, $18, $59.

Cheapskates should learn how to leave a tip... Also, what does the physical beating of the rich guy represent in this analogy? I've never understood that.

[diverborg 0]

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should I be upset if I now only get 3% of that pie and the richest in the group are getting a bigger cut.

this is the group that crashed the financial system and got us to bail them out...

Could you elaborate on this? That seems like a very broad generalization. Are you referring to the start of it all, the housing market?

Lets face it individuals buying homes way beyond their budgets are just as responsible as the entity providing the loan. Plenty of blame to go around on that one, but saying that all the wealthy are to blame for a crisis started in a very small sect of our economy seems a little silly to me. But then again I don't hate wealthy people. A rich guy in my town is the reason I have a place to put my skills to work in exchange for a salary.

And since the wealthiest 1% pay 40% of the tax burden, I'd say they mostly bailed themselves out.

[dreamdancer 0]

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should I be upset if I now only get 3% of that pie and the richest in the group are getting a bigger cut.

this is the group that crashed the financial system and got us to bail them out...

Could you elaborate on this? That seems like a very broad generalization. Are you referring to the start of it all, the housing market?

the housing market was right at the end. when did the tax cuts for the rich begin?

stay away from moving propellers - they bite
blue skies from thai sky adventures
good solid response-provoking keyboarding

[diverborg 0]

How did the tax cuts on the rich contribute to the financial collapse? From my memory, it all began with Countrywide, followed shortly by the rest of the housing market and then the banking and financial insurance instituitions. But I won't rule out that there's likely stuff going on behind the scenes that led up to this.

Seriously I will do my best to keep an open mind on this one, if you can give me a legitimate arguement.

[billvon 2,400]

>If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:
>The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.
>The fifth would pay $1.
>The sixth would pay $3.
>The seventh would pay $7.
>The eighth would pay $12.
>The ninth would pay $18.
>The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.

The barowner, being a republican-first think-later type, decides this is totally unfair. "You all are drinking the same beer, you're all going to pay the same amount, you good for nothing socialists! That way my pal Richie Rich here won't have to pay $59. That's insane."

The bill comes and each person pays $10. "Wow," says the first four guys, "I can't afford this; I make almost no money. Guess you'll have to drink without me (sniff sniff.)"

"Good riddance," says Mr. Rich.

"Good riddance indeed," says the bartender. "Except, uh, now you're all going to have to pay $17 for beer."

"Fine with me!" says Mr. Rich. "It's still less than I was paying before."

The next three guys then stand up. "Sorry, Richie, we can't pay this much with our meager incomes. We're going someplace that has cheaper beer. See ya!"

"Get out of here you freeloaders!" yells Mr. Rich.

The bartender says "indeed. although now, uh, you have to pay $33 a beer. My fixed costs are the same. You guys are still taking up space and I still have to hire a cleaning crew, and the beer itself isn't that big a chunk of my costs. And of course I'm losing income from those guys."

"$33!!" say the next two. "Richie, you asshole, you managed to get our bar tabs DOUBLED! We're out of here."

"Hey, don't be angry," Mr. Rich says. "We're all paying the same for what we get. That is perfectly fair. After all, I used to pay $59, now I'm paying $10 . . . uh, $33. It's still cheaper for me."

"Well, you can keep your 'cheap' beer, we're outta here," they say.

The bartender comes by after the last two guys leave. "Well, Mr. Rich, that just goes to show you that people don't want to pay their fair share, and want to saddle people like you with all the costs. Here's your $100 beer."

[diverborg 0]

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want to saddle people like you with all the costs. Here's your $100 beer."

Don't you mean "Here's your 10 beers for $100".

[kelpdiver 2]

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want to saddle people like you with all the costs. Here's your $100 beer."

Don't you mean "Here's your 10 beers for $100".

hah, good response.

[catfishhunter 1]

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That is:

(a) Extremely old (first documented publication was in March 2001), and

(b) Stupid.

The reason the rich pay more in taxes is that the rich have more money to begin with. The wealthiest 1% own roughly 40% of the nation's wealth, and relative to the rest of us are getting wealthier with every passing year.

Then get off your ass and go make more money

MAKE EVERY DAY COUNT
Life is Short and we never know how long we are going to have. We must live life to the fullest EVERY DAY. Everything we do should have a greater purpose.

[dreamdancer 0]

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That is:

(a) Extremely old (first documented publication was in March 2001), and

(b) Stupid.

The reason the rich pay more in taxes is that the rich have more money to begin with. The wealthiest 1% own roughly 40% of the nation's wealth, and relative to the rest of us are getting wealthier with every passing year.

Then get off your ass and go make more money

get off your ass and come up with more than a flimsy bit of stupid rhetoric

stay away from moving propellers - they bite
blue skies from thai sky adventures
good solid response-provoking keyboarding

[dreamdancer 0]

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How did the tax cuts on the rich contribute to the financial collapse? ... Seriously I will do my best to keep an open mind on this one, if you can give me a legitimate arguement.

the rich don't consume all their money (they have an excess over needs) and want - at all times - to get a return on their savings. when the post war worker/non worker tax balance tilted too far to the rich they got their hands on too much money for the financial market to give them all a return. hence they squeezed and squeezed for the market to be de-regulated in their favour and squeezed and leveraged (another way of saying they created more 'money') into every market inflating it until the promised returns on their 'investments' couldn't be delivered (not enough money in the system) and the whole shebang crashed. the housing market was just the last note in the melody - sure we can make money out of poor tenants, just watch us - not.

stay away from moving propellers - they bite
blue skies from thai sky adventures
good solid response-provoking keyboarding

[rhaig 0]

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want to saddle people like you with all the costs. Here's your $100 beer."

Don't you mean "Here's your 10 beers for $100".

and since the fixed costs are the same, the bartender is making more as well.

Not only that, but some freeloaders were encouraged to exercise a little fiscal responsibility and go home and spend a little time with their family.

--
Rob

[Southern_Man 0]

I missed the part about borrowing $42 of the $100 from the Chinese?

"What if there were no hypothetical questions?"

[rhaig 0]

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I missed the part about borrowing $42 of the $100 from the Chinese?

shh... we don't talk about that. We just hope that they won't ask for it back anytime soon.

Because if they call in their markers, we can't drink anymore.

--
Rob

[dreamdancer 0]

and the other $48 goes to pay the bouncers that keep the bar secure...

stay away from moving propellers - they bite
blue skies from thai sky adventures
good solid response-provoking keyboarding

[catfishhunter 1]

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That is:

(a) Extremely old (first documented publication was in March 2001), and

(b) Stupid.

The reason the rich pay more in taxes is that the rich have more money to begin with. The wealthiest 1% own roughly 40% of the nation's wealth, and relative to the rest of us are getting wealthier with every passing year.

Then get off your ass and go make more money

get off your ass and come up with more than a flimsy bit of stupid rhetoric

Why? Does it really need anything more? If you want more then work more. Pretty f'n simple. Stop whining about what someone has. There is that better?

P.S. I have had absolutly nothing in my life and today I have more then I need. When I had nothing I asked for nothing nor took anything but now that I have something i'm suppossed to give it away? WTF is wrong with that picture.

MAKE EVERY DAY COUNT
Life is Short and we never know how long we are going to have. We must live life to the fullest EVERY DAY. Everything we do should have a greater purpose.