Incomes of the Rich and Gilded

[rightwinger]

Remember the top 10% of the wealthy pay 90% of the tax revenue the government receives.

Tax Statistics - Produced by the Statistics of Income Division and Other Areas of the Internal Revenue Service

When you claim 90% of the available income, you pay 90% of the taxes.
Not too hard to figure. And we should be THANKING the wealthy for this?

Do you claim 90% of your available income? What percentage of your gross is your AGI?

I think you misread..

90% of all wealth is held by 10% of the population

 

[Ringel05]

When you claim 90% of the available income, you pay 90% of the taxes.
Not too hard to figure. And we should be THANKING the wealthy for this?

Do you claim 90% of your available income? What percentage of your gross is your AGI?

I think you misread..

90% of all wealth is held by 10% of the population

Yup, I misread.

 

[Citizen]

Oh yeah...and on the most part, the rich are the ones that employ the others...

I would like to see a thread on USMB about posters that are employed by the poor or homeless.

And I'd like to see a thread about how the wealthy got wealthy got wealthy without the help of others.

While I do not know about the wealthy, I would like to comment on the difference between employers and employees.

For example, let us take a small privately owned trucking company with 20 trucks.

Although the employees actually do most of the work, the owner is the one that must negotiate the contracts, borrow the money to purchase the trucks, keep money on hand to maintain the trucks, pay the drivers, and the operating expenses, while waiting for the people they are hauling for to pay their bills.

Also if fuel, or other operating costs increase, it is the owner, not the driver that takes the hit.

If the worst comes to pass, and the company has to fold, the driver just goes to work for another trucking company, while the owner looses everything he has invested.

It is because the owner is the one that has invested everything in the business, and is the one with everything to loose, that they make the most money, while the driver has no investment other than the time it took for them to earn their wages, and can walk away free and clear, at any time.

In other words, the one that takes the greatest risk earns the most money.

 

[rightwinger]

I would like to see a thread on USMB about posters that are employed by the poor or homeless.

And I'd like to see a thread about how the wealthy got wealthy got wealthy without the help of others.

While I do not know about the wealthy, I would like to comment on the difference between employers and employees.

For example, let us take a small privately owned trucking company with 20 trucks.

Although the employees actually do most of the work, the owner is the one that must negotiate the contracts, borrow the money to purchase the trucks, keep money on hand to maintain the trucks, pay the drivers, and the operating expenses, while waiting for the people they are hauling for to pay their bills.

Also if fuel, or other operating costs increase, it is the owner, not the driver that takes the hit.

If the worst comes to pass, and the company has to fold, the driver just goes to work for another trucking company, while the owner looses everything he has invested.

It is because the owner is the one that has invested everything in the business, and is the one with everything to loose, that they make the most money, while the driver has no investment other than the time it took for them to earn their wages, and can walk away free and clear, at any time.

In other words, the one that takes the greatest risk earns the most money.

I do not have a problem with the risk takers making money when a risk pays off.
I do object to the tax code, labor laws and public protections being revised to allow the super weallthy to gain more wealth. The proportion of wealth held by the top 10% has increased significantly while wages and benifits for the working class have been held down

 

[pal_of_poor]

The rich ALSO pay for higher taxes on goods and services.
The rich ALSO pay themajority of the national tax revenue
The rich income INCLUDES income made on investments
The analyisis is completely disingenuous.

Oh yeah...and on the most part, the rich are the ones that employ the others...

But please...continue to blast those that pay for government spending, stuimulus packages, unemployment insurance, healthcare for many, car for clunkers programs, etc etc etc.

And the reason they pay such a large share is they make such a large share, and use so much more of the commons with their business.

It is the labor that does that work, in both investment companies, and in ordinary manufacturing, as well as in services, that allow the rich, to be rich.

These are all repeat lines, used to glorify the rich, in the corporate media. I've never been a listen and repeater like you apparently are here.

And the rich don't pay that much more as a percentage of their incomes, on goods and services. We all eat about the same amount, and though the rich might wear and gain the benefits of buying more expensive food, and clothes, and cars, as a percentage of income, it becomes much, much less.

Some rich people are pretty great, and others seem to be corrosively adjusted to try to suck the life-blood out of society. It is the maldistribution of incomes pointed out by this post, that is creating our problems in this economy. When so much gets pushed to the top, by a system our politicians are paid by the rich to enact, and the rest of the income segments are starved for progress, then in an economy driven by spending to the tune of 2/3, the economy begins to wilt on the vine. Then, we all suffer, and it's time to correct the maldistribution.

 

[pal_of_poor]

America has undergone a redistribution of wealth. For the most part, the rich deserve to be rich. They have either made the right moves or inherited from someone who has.
As the OP states however, the super rich have manipulated the playing field so that they are able to monopolize more of the available wealth. It is not because they work harder than previous wealthy Americans, but because they have manipulated the tax codes and instilled restrictions on the working class that allows them to prosper while the standard of living for working Americans has declined.

I do not oppose the wealthy being wealthy, but would like to see the wealth distribution in this country return to former levels

It will not happen until the American work ethic returns to where it was...and that wont happen if we continue to make it easy for them.

Try to recruit people from Michigan for jobs in NY. I did. They wont do it. They have entitlements that actually make it a dumb move to leave the state for employment. They lose nmortgage assistance, they lose extended unemployment for GOOD...even if the new job does NOT work out....

You need drive to acheive success. We are leaning in a direction where you are better off with the status quo.

I get tired of the idea that we're all sucky employees. For the most part, the bosses I've had promote the boot-lickers, and ignore those who work well, allowing them to become disinterested in making the boss more money. Kissing your *ss, might make you feel like "big boss man," but it isn't the thing that will make you money. You are surrounded by sucky employees because like the other guy said above, you fire the ones you know are good, and you promote the people who kiss your butts.

And this idea that the poor and middle class don't have headaches, giant headaches? How absurd is that. IT is the employees that handle all of the headaches of the rich, and do the worst jobs, like hauling off your garbage, or dealing with your picky *sses in the restaurants. We've got our own headaches, usually financial ones, and we have to deal with most of yours too!

And whining once again, about being villified, when you, and all of your corporate media have been villifying the poorest, and the middle class, and the unions for decades now? Puuuhhhllleeezzzee, you hate class warfare don't you, unless you are furiously waging it on the poor and middle-class, by importing immigrants, exporting jobs with globalization, and destroying unions in the process.

Well, it works both ways. If you crap on the middle class and poor for long enough, we'll start to fight back, and you'll notice one thing. There are way, way more of us. And if more of them will get off the brainwashing FAUX News, and realize which class they are in, and that they may just be fighting for the wrong team just because of perpetual brainwashing, then you are really going to be in trouble. Well, you'll see it as trouble, but you'll still be rich, and not much will really change with you, but you'll be whining a lot more because finally you'll have to pay more taxes to clean up this mess you've created with spending your money to put these terrible politicians in office.

 

[rightwinger]

America has undergone a redistribution of wealth. For the most part, the rich deserve to be rich. They have either made the right moves or inherited from someone who has.
As the OP states however, the super rich have manipulated the playing field so that they are able to monopolize more of the available wealth. It is not because they work harder than previous wealthy Americans, but because they have manipulated the tax codes and instilled restrictions on the working class that allows them to prosper while the standard of living for working Americans has declined.

I do not oppose the wealthy being wealthy, but would like to see the wealth distribution in this country return to former levels

It will not happen until the American work ethic returns to where it was...and that wont happen if we continue to make it easy for them.

Try to recruit people from Michigan for jobs in NY. I did. They wont do it. They have entitlements that actually make it a dumb move to leave the state for employment. They lose nmortgage assistance, they lose extended unemployment for GOOD...even if the new job does NOT work out....

You need drive to acheive success. We are leaning in a direction where you are better off with the status quo.

Another fine example of how republicans hate Americans. Only the wealthy are real Americans. The working class is lazy, that is why they don't succeed. If you work and are not rich, the problem is you don't work hard enough.

Truth- America leads the world in productivity
Truth- Americans work more hours than other industrialized nations

US leads world in Labour Productivity: US companies put Ireland in second place in global rankings

 

[PLYMCO_PILGRIM]

When you claim 90% of the available income, you pay 90% of the taxes.
Not too hard to figure. And we should be THANKING the wealthy for this?

No we should just make sure we know the facts.

The top 10% earning 90% of the income and paying 90% of the taxes would sound totally fair to me.

Read article 8 of the US constitution, it says the taxes shall be uniform.

The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;

It says taxes shall be uniform throughout the United States, not uniform between taxpayers

Uniform throughout the United states....IE 10% throughout the united states=10% for all citizens.

It is implicit in the language.

 

[rightwinger]

No we should just make sure we know the facts.

The top 10% earning 90% of the income and paying 90% of the taxes would sound totally fair to me.

Read article 8 of the US constitution, it says the taxes shall be uniform.

The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;

It says taxes shall be uniform throughout the United States, not uniform between taxpayers

Uniform throughout the United states....IE 10% throughout the united states=10% for all citizens.

It is implicit in the language.

Nice try.....
Uniform in that no State shall be taxed at a higher rate than another.

If your bizarre interpretation were true, our tax code would have been overruled decades ago.

 

[Polk]

Oh yeah...and on the most part, the rich are the ones that employ the others...

I would like to see a thread on USMB about posters that are employed by the poor or homeless.

And I'd like to see a thread about how the wealthy got wealthy got wealthy without the help of others.

It's like they assume these businesses are only selling products to rich people.

 

[Fatality]

Income Shares: Rich get a Bigger Slice
This chart represents the share of income going to the bottom 90 percent of Americans shrinking between 1970 and 2000. Among the top 10 percent, the higher a person ranked the more one’s slice of the economic pie grew. The changes are from 1970 to 2000.

Bottom 90% (incomes) shrunk from 67.1% in 1970 to 52% in 2000.

Decrease of 22.5%
______________________________________

From 90-95 incomes gained only slightly from 11.1 to 11.1 which was

Positive change of 0.4%

_______________________________________

From 95-99% 12.7% to 15.2%

This represents a positive 19.5% change
_______________________________________

99. to 99.5% from 2.8 to 4.1%

Increase of 47.0%
________________________________________

99.5% to 99.9%, 3.5% to 6.6%

Increase of 90%
________________________________________

99.9 to 99.99%, increased from 1.8% to 5.9%

A whopping 412% increase in incomes.
________________________________________

Perfectly Legal, by David Cay Johnston, p.33

As this trend goes, so will the death of our democracy. As I said, when you look at this kind of thing, all having to do with how our politicians have manipulated things since 1970, politicians on both sides representing mostly the rich, giving them tax breaks while all of us have to endure higher taxes on sales, gas, more fees on utilities, and higher very regressive social security taxes, you have to wonder how long it will take for us to implode from within.

Another unfortunate consequence from money being concentrated in this manner is that those who want to try and climb the social ladder, and start a business are increasingly hampered, as the majority of us who will be customers fall further and further behind, being able to buy less and less. As taxes are cut for the richest, with income, inheritance, and capital gains cuts, the rest of us will have to endure ever higher increases to make up for the money given to the richest. Anytime you hear of a cut to the top two percent, which were the majority of Bush’s cuts, you will know that eventually these taxes will fall back on top of you.

This trend, if it continues, will crush the economic life out of America. These figures are correct up to 2000, and the trend has continued, the gaps even more extreme now, after nearly eight years of Bush giving tax cuts to the richest, from money borrowed from China, Saudi Arabia, and China.

Even conservative pundit Ben Stein likes to say, we can tax that top group way more than we do.

 

[KittenKoder]

Income Shares: Rich get a Bigger Slice
This chart represents the share of income going to the bottom 90 percent of Americans shrinking between 1970 and 2000. Among the top 10 percent, the higher a person ranked the more one’s slice of the economic pie grew. The changes are from 1970 to 2000.

Bottom 90% (incomes) shrunk from 67.1% in 1970 to 52% in 2000.

Decrease of 22.5%
______________________________________

From 90-95 incomes gained only slightly from 11.1 to 11.1 which was

Positive change of 0.4%

_______________________________________

From 95-99% 12.7% to 15.2%

This represents a positive 19.5% change
_______________________________________

99. to 99.5% from 2.8 to 4.1%

Increase of 47.0%
________________________________________

99.5% to 99.9%, 3.5% to 6.6%

Increase of 90%
________________________________________

99.9 to 99.99%, increased from 1.8% to 5.9%

A whopping 412% increase in incomes.
________________________________________

Perfectly Legal, by David Cay Johnston, p.33

As this trend goes, so will the death of our democracy. As I said, when you look at this kind of thing, all having to do with how our politicians have manipulated things since 1970, politicians on both sides representing mostly the rich, giving them tax breaks while all of us have to endure higher taxes on sales, gas, more fees on utilities, and higher very regressive social security taxes, you have to wonder how long it will take for us to implode from within.

Another unfortunate consequence from money being concentrated in this manner is that those who want to try and climb the social ladder, and start a business are increasingly hampered, as the majority of us who will be customers fall further and further behind, being able to buy less and less. As taxes are cut for the richest, with income, inheritance, and capital gains cuts, the rest of us will have to endure ever higher increases to make up for the money given to the richest. Anytime you hear of a cut to the top two percent, which were the majority of Bush’s cuts, you will know that eventually these taxes will fall back on top of you.

This trend, if it continues, will crush the economic life out of America. These figures are correct up to 2000, and the trend has continued, the gaps even more extreme now, after nearly eight years of Bush giving tax cuts to the richest, from money borrowed from China, Saudi Arabia, and China.

Even conservative pundit Ben Stein likes to say, we can tax that top group way more than we do.

Jealous much?

 

[PatekPhilippe]

Income Shares: Rich get a Bigger Slice
This chart represents the share of income going to the bottom 90 percent of Americans shrinking between 1970 and 2000. Among the top 10 percent, the higher a person ranked the more one’s slice of the economic pie grew. The changes are from 1970 to 2000.

Bottom 90% (incomes) shrunk from 67.1% in 1970 to 52% in 2000.

Decrease of 22.5%
______________________________________

From 90-95 incomes gained only slightly from 11.1 to 11.1 which was

Positive change of 0.4%

_______________________________________

From 95-99% 12.7% to 15.2%

This represents a positive 19.5% change
_______________________________________

99. to 99.5% from 2.8 to 4.1%

Increase of 47.0%
________________________________________

99.5% to 99.9%, 3.5% to 6.6%

Increase of 90%
________________________________________

99.9 to 99.99%, increased from 1.8% to 5.9%

A whopping 412% increase in incomes.
________________________________________

Perfectly Legal, by David Cay Johnston, p.33

As this trend goes, so will the death of our democracy. As I said, when you look at this kind of thing, all having to do with how our politicians have manipulated things since 1970, politicians on both sides representing mostly the rich, giving them tax breaks while all of us have to endure higher taxes on sales, gas, more fees on utilities, and higher very regressive social security taxes, you have to wonder how long it will take for us to implode from within.

Another unfortunate consequence from money being concentrated in this manner is that those who want to try and climb the social ladder, and start a business are increasingly hampered, as the majority of us who will be customers fall further and further behind, being able to buy less and less. As taxes are cut for the richest, with income, inheritance, and capital gains cuts, the rest of us will have to endure ever higher increases to make up for the money given to the richest. Anytime you hear of a cut to the top two percent, which were the majority of Bush’s cuts, you will know that eventually these taxes will fall back on top of you.

This trend, if it continues, will crush the economic life out of America. These figures are correct up to 2000, and the trend has continued, the gaps even more extreme now, after nearly eight years of Bush giving tax cuts to the richest, from money borrowed from China, Saudi Arabia, and China.

Even conservative pundit Ben Stein likes to say, we can tax that top group way more than we do.

Cry me a river douche bag.....why don't you get your fat stank ass up off of your momma's couch, sign up to get a GED and then start pulling your own weight in our society instead of bitching about the rich....who by the way....WORKED THEIR F*CKING ASS OFF TO GET RICH!