Redistribution - to Whom?
In the last couple of days I've gotten two different emails complaining about candidate Obama's tax proposals, referring to it a "redistribution of wealth." I normally try to stay out of these partisan discussions, but this kind of thinking is so thoughtless that I feel like I need to comment.Now I do have a position on the election, a reluctant one because I don't have too much good to say about either party, but consider my comments as not being partisan, but just simply addressing the sloppy thinking that went into the original emails on redistribution.
The battle on redistribution was lost over 150 years ago. Both political parties are avid redistributionists, they just have different constituents. So redistribution is a fact. It's just a question of - to whom? We've been living with a system over the last 10 or 15 years where the money has been redistributed from us the taxpayers to:
- the multimillion dollar golden parachute for the fired head of Fannie Mae
- ditto Freddie Mac
- ditto heads of Goldman, Watchovia, Chase, AIG, Lehman, etc
- pay and retirement for the worst head of the Fed ever, Alan "I don't see no stinking bubble" Greenspan
- top execs of all the bond rating agencies, who should be in jail for turning junk into AAA with the stroke of a pen
- the heads, both R and D, of the Senate and House financial committees over the last 10 years, who were bought off, or ignorant, or both, and whose oversight ability was effectively zero.
- the bank and hedge fund execs who were paid 7 and 8 and 9 figures to create CDOs and play a shell game with them.
- all the R and D legislators who cheerfully took contributions and lobbyist perks to let the game go on.
So now that the game has ended (actually it's just been redesigned) who will pay for all the fun? Why, the American worker, of course! We'll pay in hyperinflation caused by a 3 trillion dollar deficit and in 10% or higher unemployment. None of this will seriously affect the lifestyle of the
affluent and ethically challenged who caused it, many of whom are being paid big bucks as usual to supposedly correct the problem they caused. The lobbyists, as has been widely publicized, all seem to be busy working for the McCain campaign.
While we were working and paying taxes, the guys on the list above were pocketing $20 million to over $100 million EACH. Total $750 billion and climbing. Our money. Thanks to Bush and Congress. Obama's tax plan is a rounding error compared to the redistribution of wealth that's already going on.
So who do we have to hold accountable for this redistribution by both parties? There's only one answer - US! We the people are responsible because we have made it clear that we will not support any candidate that tells us the truth and refuses to promise us "goodies" from the public purse. Ron Paul tried and couldn't get 10% support. So we've done it to ourselves, as history has predicted we would.
I've already voted, and sadly I had to make my decision based on who I thought would do the least damage to the country I love. I wish it were different.
posted by Wes Hopper @ 11:45 AM
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