HOW MUCH OF THE MONEY I EARN, DO YOU THINK I DESERVE TO KEEP? This was the question posed by a 17 year old young man, at the CNN/ TEA PARTY EXPRESS Debate; and ever since it was asked, Republican pundits have been anxious to ambush the first democrat they can come across, with it. We must admit, that the GOP has a way with words. They have mastered the art of oversimplification; They have an economic philosophy that can fit on a napkin-"Tax Cuts For The Wealthy, Produce Jobs and Growth". And When asked why we have to give tax cuts to the wealthy? They respond with "You Have Never Gotten A Job From A Poor Person"; Their is even enough room left on that napkin, for their foreign policy-"Peace Through Strength". Before The Iraq war, the bedeviled democrats, opposed to the war with, "Doesn't Everyone Deserve Freedom. Why Don't You Believe That People In The Middle East Are Capable of Handling Democracy?" And When Democrats point out that the current deficit Republicans rage about, was built by the Republicans themselves, they respond with the tried and poll tested phrase, "Blame Bushing", which manages to be childish and disarming all at once. Yep, Republicans have a way with words, and this question is no different; Talk radio has already produced another generation of Republicans adept at developing questions that manage to paint any respondent as an evil socialist, Son of Lenin! "How Much of The Money I Earn, Do I Deserve To Keep? It's a question perfectly designed to solicit the kind of absurd responses that some have come to demand of elected officials. And far too many politicians have lowered themselves to simply telling their audiences whatever they would like to hear. "How Much of The Money I Earn, Do I Deserve To Keep?" "ALL OF IT! IT'S YOUR MONEY! YOU EARNED IT!" This is the only response that won't get you booed offstage and the perfectly phrased question allows the pandering pols to tell voters precisely what they think we want to hear, which is that we shouldn't have to pay taxes at all. And the media allows the absurd implication to fly by unchallenged.
So What Is The Best Answer to This? How Can We Stop the cycle of ridiculous promises and insipidly shallow debate? We tell the truth: How Much of Your Money Do You Deserve To Keep?
"You Deserve to keep all of your money. You Also Deserve to not be taxed at a higher rate then the average billionaire. The Most Unfair aspect of our current tax system, is that we expect Secretaries, Carpenters, Teachers, and Cops to pay more of their paychecks in taxes then we demand of any billionaire hedge fund manager. And we need to ask the GOP WHY THEY BELIEVE THAT YOU DESERVE TO BE TAXED AT A HIGHER RATE THEN MILLIONAIRES!"
This is the best answer, in a quick pinch. Now if we have more time to talk we should expand on this. What is interesting about this question is that it came from a 17 year old. Now hopefully, this young man hasn't been listening to Glenn Beck, who has been telling his listeners that college aint for everybody. And that some people need to simply not take out the debt, to go to college. Hopefully this young fellow, wants to go to college, but if he does, it probably means he has filled out a FAFSA. He is probably seeking federally secured loans. He may be going to a publicly funded university or he will most certainly be attending a private college that receives grants for everything from research to faculty. Just like Michele Bachman, Joe Miller, Rand Paul and virtually every Republican, our nation and all of its citizens need services that only a centralized government can provide. No company is eager to build a highway for little to no money out of your pocket, and you can't pay for streets as individuals. The public school this young man likely attended can't be funded individually. In fact if he or his parents tried to pay for the services they received at that public school, they would likely go into bankruptcy. We live in the best America that has ever been and most of the things we enjoy: THE INTERNET, DIGITAL CABLE: FROZEN DINNERS; ROADS, SCHOOLS, THE BUSES PEOPLE TAKE UNTIL THEY CAN AFFORD CARS, POLICE DEPARTMENTS, FIRE DEPARTMENTS: All of those require that we pay taxes. So the Extended Answer to this young man's question is:
You Deserve to keep all of your money. You Also Deserve to not be taxed at a higher rate then the average billionaire. The Most Unfair aspect of our current tax system, is that we expect Secretaries, Carpenters, Teachers, and Cops to pay more of their paychecks in taxes then we demand of any billionaire hedge fund manager. And we need to ask the GOP WHY THEY BELIEVE THAT YOU DESERVE TO BE TAXED AT A HIGHER RATE THEN MILLIONAIRES----but anyone saying you shouldn't have to pay any taxes is lying to you. ---You deserve to keep all of your money, but you also have to pay taxes for the services you want and need-that way the things you need in life, like your education, the roads you drive on, the police that protect you and the healthcare that your grandparents need today and that you will need tomorrow-you pay taxes so that those things are actually affordable. We know what life was like without Social Security, the suffering of the elderly without Medicare; We know what life was like before those programs and YOU WOULDN'T EVER WANT TO LIVE IN THAT AMERICA! Don't let the Republicans con you into believing that we don't need to pay taxes, thats an empty promise-and don't let them get away with taxing you more then they tax the rich. YOU DON'T DESERVE THAT!
You know, 95% of Americans utilize some kind of Government Backed Agencies to purchase their homes. Ever since 1938, the American Dream became affordable for millions of americans. In fact, what we call the American Dream became a reality through the programs the GOP now opposes. Now, I'm sure that 95% of americans includes that young man's parents; it certainly includes Michele Bachman!
The GOP Would have people believe that if we do anything together; if we work together in any way; if we are, at all concerned about each other, THEY CALL THAT SOCIALISM. Its not socialism and if your in that 95% of Americans, if you have ever attended a public school, or called a police officer, or driven on a highway-the republicans are calling YOU a communist. They are trying to make you feel ashamed-but the reality is that none of them got through life without the services they now oppose! We need to work together as a country and when we do, healthcare becomes affordable-safe neighborhoods become possible-and education becomes accessible to all!
Now, all of that won't quite fit on a napkin, but it will fit in a 30second -1 minute response time.
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