How to fix economy: lower corporate taxes, higher taxes on the middle class

I think when you're talking about luxuries, those who are truly rich will continue to buy such things. I know people who fly first class everywhere and if the ticket went from $800 to $850 or $900, they wouldn't blink.

Cigarettes are already taxed like mad, as I believe they should be. I don't see a decrease in smoking. I say tax liquor the same way.

While we're at it, why don't we tax the hell out of any non-hunting guns?

 

Genuine fiscal conservatives probably would accept that deal or close to it.

The problem is that today's Republicans aren't genuine fiscal conservatives. They're fine with racking up deficits and debt, as long as they make the rich, corporations and churches more powerful in the U.S. and remaking the whole world in America's image.

As far as today's Republicans are concerned, government spending on unnecessary wars, vouchers to attend religious schools and tax breaks for corporations and the wealthy are good. Government spending on social programs that help mostly the poor is bad. And any initiative proposed by one Barack Hussein Obama, no matter how much it reflects previous Republican dogma, is even worse.

 

You really have to be careful re draconian defense cuts. China is out there, and they're as serious as a heart attack.

The ideal would be to target the obvious waste and overpricing, but that would wound someone or other's precious private pets, and/or Halliburton. Melvin Laird forbid.

 

We're not going to defeat China with cost overruns. I post this a lot. $300 billion a year - in cost overruns alone.

www.galorath.com/wp/296-billion-dollars-in-dod-cost-overruns-2009-gao-weapons-systems-assessments.php

 

Defense cuts? Fuck, we can't even get goddamn paper for the printer. No shit, we argue over fucking printer paper. Not the $10,000 I'll burn in fuel next week on training flights. A ream of fucking paper.

 

Give me a little credit here. I'm not just spitballin'.

I've posted this before, and you could find the same thing with a minute's research.

 

Look, if you want to cut defense, you can, but you have to completely reevaluate the goals & mission.

Everyone wants to focus on Afghanistan & Iraq. What about Korea and Germany?

What percentage of NATO's bill do we pay?

Our military buys us protection and influence.

If we think we need less of both, we can shrink our military.

 

All due respect, that's not a money problem. That's a management problem.

 

It's a problem throughout the division. Not just my unit. We can't order parts to repair our equipment. We can't do hoist training because funds for repair parts have been turned off. Yeah. It's a money problem.

 

Quoting from the original piece:

. . . we need to make some significant cuts in Social Security, Medicare and defense and, at the same time, pay a lot more in taxes. The total cost could be around $400 billion more a year.

again, here's that link I just posted

www.galorath.com/wp/296-billion-dollars-in-dod-cost-overruns-2009-gao-weapons-systems-assessments.php

illustrating $300 billion in DoD cost overruns alone last year.

 

I'm guessing he meant a management problem at levels above your Division.

It's a money problem for you.

 

tbf, again, all due respect, the American taxpayer delivers money by the truckload to the Pentagon every second of every minute of every day.