June 25, 2014

Tax Cuts For Job Creation? Do You Know How Compound Interest Works?

Never mind that it is consumers who create the demand for products and services that in turn generates the need for additional jobs to meet that demand. Yes, people need to start the companies that build the products, but let’s get one thing straight here, nobody would start a company if they thought there was no demand for a product. And nobody would start a company if they thought the general public had no purchasing power to buy their product. So jobs will always be a function of demand, not supply.

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April 2, 2014

Supreme Court Strikes Down Aggregate Campaign Contribution Limits

By a politically divided 5-4 vote, the Supreme Court today struck down overall contribution limits to federal campaigns by individuals, citing free speech. This ruling should not be a shock given the Roberts court presided over the “Citizens United” case which, for legal purposes, declared corporations to have the same rights as citizens.

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February 26, 2014

An Indefensible Economic System

Someone needs to explain to me why there are so many Americans making average or even substandard wages who continue to defend the capitalistic status quo. I think this is where Robert Reich is correct, that people are simply afraid. In a labor market where employers have all the power, people just feel lucky to have a job.

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January 24, 2014

Economic Inequality Is A Clear And Present Danger To American Democracy

The phrase “clear and present danger” is the standard by which freedom of speech can be abridged. As the saying goes, nobody has the right to shout “fire” in a theater. The United States Supreme Court began citing this standard in 20th century rulings, reaffirming that freedom of speech stops at the point where it puts pubic safety in peril. The idea is controversial, but it should be understood that constitutional rights are not absolute. Whether you agree with this standard as it applies to freedom of speech, is of little importance here. It only matters that you understand what it means, because economic inequality is a clear and present danger to American democracy.

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January 20, 2014

Taxing The Rich: A Liberal Argument For A Progressive Tax System To Grow The Economy

Conservatives will play the “class warfare” card if you dare mention a tax increase on the rich. And if you talk about income inequality, well, this means you are simply envious, and you are trying to “punish success.” But for this conservative “logic” to be rational, wouldn’t we have to consider the current progressive tax system to also be unfair? — Well, as it turns out, that is exactly what many conservatives say about progressive taxation, but it doesn’t mean their assessment is sound.

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January 17, 2014

David Brooks On Income Inequality: There’s A Special Kind Of Guilt Reserved For The Poor

The latest piece by David Brooks in The New York Times is typical of conservative-think on issues of economic inequality. Because the free market is the most perfect system ever devised by man (yes, I’m laying the sarcasm on pretty thick), that means when we have an apparent failure of our revered capitalist system, that system is not to blame. Instead we should blame social issues. Oh, but only the social issues of the poor. Because the wealthy have reserved a special kind of guilt just for the poor.

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December 5, 2013

Why Are Middle Class Incomes Stagnant? Are We Simply Unproductive Compared To The Super Wealthy?

Would you like to make an extra $50,000, $75,000, or $100,000 dollars a year? I know I would. Would you like a yearly income of $75,000, $150,000, or $300,000? In reality, most Americans make far less than even the lowest amount I listed. In 2012, the median income in America was $51,017, which was down slightly from 51,100 the year before. The poverty rate was 15%, which is over 45 million people. For the bottom 90% of the country, wages have been flat for the past three decades compared to top percent earners who have seen their income double, triple and more.

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September 19, 2013

Deluded Forbes Author Says The One Percent ‘Should Be Awarded The Congressional Medal Of Honor’

There are occasions when you read an article by the “opposition” and you can’t help but think, “The joke is on me. You got me! This is a fine piece of satire, have you considered submitting it to The Onion?” Such is the case with a Forbes op-ed by Harry Binswanger, and the pseudo satire begins with the title, “Give Back? Yes It’s Time For The 99% To Give Back To The 1%.”

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