US Taxes are too low compared to the rest of the world

[Denizen]

US government taxes might be the lowest, but Trump administration spending is the highest.

It's not trickle-down economics, its trickle-down criminality from the most criminal administration ever.

 

[Denizen]

US government taxes might be the lowest, but Trump administration spending is the highest.

It's not trickle-down economics, its trickle-down criminality from the most criminal administration ever.

Donald Trump is Bush 3 with an orange toupee.

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

Marxist politics are based on hate and envy, there is not a single synapse of critical thought involved, it's emotional bullshit from a bunch of ugly women and beta males that should have been eaten by predators or wandered into machinery because they're genetic waste, the bottom of the gene pool.

And if every Deplorable had to do an IQ test to be able to vote, Trump would have lost 30 per cent of his votes (at least)...

And Hillary would have lost 40%.

 

[kyzr]

The US keeps borrowing money, $23T and counting, and that is "unsustainable" as reported by the GAO.
National debt of the United States - Wikipedia

The rest of the world appears to be more responsible.
How do US taxes compare internationally?
View attachment 304081

So to Balance the Budget and start paying down the Debt the US needs to seriously revamp the tax code. Here are my recommendations for a return to fiscal sanity:
A. Hire another "Grace Commission" to audit and fix the Federal budget deficit

B. Cut Spending $625b a year
1. Cut defense to 2017 levels of $600b until the Debt is reduced, saving $150b
2. Cut foreign aid $55b (until Debt is paid we can't borrow to give money away)
3. Cut Welfare $200b & Medicaid $200b (about half)
4. Cut education $20b (state responsibility)

US Government Defense Spending History with Charts - a www.usgovernmentspending.com briefing
Current US Defense Spending:
Year Military Veterans Foreign Aid Total Defense
2017 $598.70 billion $178.00 billion $46.30 billion $823.00 billion
2018 $631.20 billion $180.40 billion $49.00 billion $860.50 billion
2019 $684.60 billion $202.10 billion $54.30 billion $941.00 billion
2020 $737.90 billion $219.20 billion $53.10 billion $1.00 trillion

C. To cover the $900b budget deficit the following taxes need to be raised:
1. Raise the top tax rate about 7% above 2016 levels +$400b
2. Implement a new 3% Fed sales tax +$400b (aka VAT)
3. Implement a new transaction tax on all stocks & bonds Impose a Tax on Financial Transactions | Congressional Budget Office +$100b (stops hi-frequency traders)
4. Implement a new remittances tax/fee on all money sent out of the US https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2018/05/tax_remittances_can_build_the_wall.html 2% of $140b is +$3b a year


D. Reform entitlements, Medicare & Social Security, currently projected to be insolvent:

Social Security will be unable to meet obligations (not technically "bankrupt") in 2034, paying only 79% of owed benefits, while it will be actually bankrupt around 2090.
Social Security fixes:
https://www.fool.com/retirement/2018/05/21/how-warren-buffett-thinks-we-should-fix-social-sec.aspx
https://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/planning-to-retire/2014/11/14/5-potential-social-security-fixes
https://www.aarp.org/work/social-security/info-05-2012/future-of-social-security-proposals.html

Medicare will be insolvent in 2026
Medicare Fixes:
https://www.fool.com/retirement/general/2016/03/27/7-ways-to-fix-medicare.aspx
https://thehill.com/opinion/healthcare/369151-fix-what-weve-got-and-make-medicare-right-this-year
https://www.nationalaffairs.com/publications/detail/how-to-save-and-fix-medicare
https://www.aarp.org/content/dam/aarp/health/medicare-and-medicaid/2012-05/The-Future-Of-Medicare.pdf

So you want to raise taxes on the poor and middle class? Because that is how the rest of the world has higher taxes.
Are you openly in favor of harming the poor and middle class?

Maybe you don't comprehend the problem. The $23T Debt will eventually cause the whole economy and financial system to collapse.
The US dollar will be worthless. What happens to the poor and middle class when that happens?
The OP showed you that the rest of the world pays higher taxes and don't pay $400b a year in interest on their Debt.
So stop whining about the fucking poor and middle class, and try to see the fucking iceberg dead ahead.

Cut spending.

Look, taxing the rich doesn't work. You can't point to a single country anywhere in the world, which has taxed the rich, and had that plan work.

So you two option if you want to avoid destroying the country with debt.

A: Tax the poor and middle class, like France, which is why they had the Yellow Vest protests.
B: Cut spending. Maybe you can't just afford whatever the heck you want. Maybe you have to grow up, and be an adult, and say we don't have money for this.

Those are your two options. And by the way, option doesn't work. You jack up taxes, and you still don't have the money, which is exactly why France was jacking up taxes when they caused the Yellow Vest protests.

So option A, will eventually lead to option B anyway.

What an ignorant post!

1. Tax the rich;

2. Cut military spending, by half;

3. Transition to single payer, universal health care. Bring Big Pharma to heel;

4. Start investing in infratstructure and education;

5. Make retraining of the unemployed and underemployed production workers a priority;

6. Pass a $15 minimum wage.

OMG, we almost agree on something?!

1. Tax the rich; increase the top rate by 7% above 2018 levels

2. Cut military spending, by half; cut from $750b to $600b and end the endless wars

3. Transition to single payer, universal health care. Bring Big Pharma to heel; Fix Social Security & Medicare from going bankrupt

4. Start investing in infrastructure and education; those are state responsibilities per the Constitution

5. Retrain the unemployed, underemployed, & those entering the job market; free community college & job training i.e. the German model

6. Pass a $15 minimum wage maybe a $15 minimum for heads of households

 

[kyzr]

US government taxes might be the lowest, but Trump administration spending is the highest.

It's not trickle-down economics, its trickle-down criminality from the most criminal administration ever.

Who controls the purse strings? Nancy and her House of nitwits.
Why didn't Nancy do something about the budget deficit?

 

[Dr Grump]

And Hillary would have lost 40%.

I'm thinking less than 5%...

 

[CWayne]

"Taxes are too low" said nobody ever.

At least not in this country full of freeloaders like you that are happy to push their debt off on to the future generations.

GFY. I pay my own way. I need nothing from the government and don't vote for FreeSHitArmy candidates.

You vote for Repubs who spend just as much as the Dems.

You are part of the problem, not the solution.

And you as well.

 

[Dragonlady]

The US keeps borrowing money, $23T and counting, and that is "unsustainable" as reported by the GAO.
National debt of the United States - Wikipedia

The rest of the world appears to be more responsible.
How do US taxes compare internationally?
View attachment 304081

So to Balance the Budget and start paying down the Debt the US needs to seriously revamp the tax code. Here are my recommendations for a return to fiscal sanity:
A. Hire another "Grace Commission" to audit and fix the Federal budget deficit

B. Cut Spending $625b a year
1. Cut defense to 2017 levels of $600b until the Debt is reduced, saving $150b
2. Cut foreign aid $55b (until Debt is paid we can't borrow to give money away)
3. Cut Welfare $200b & Medicaid $200b (about half)
4. Cut education $20b (state responsibility)

US Government Defense Spending History with Charts - a www.usgovernmentspending.com briefing
Current US Defense Spending:
Year Military Veterans Foreign Aid Total Defense
2017 $598.70 billion $178.00 billion $46.30 billion $823.00 billion
2018 $631.20 billion $180.40 billion $49.00 billion $860.50 billion
2019 $684.60 billion $202.10 billion $54.30 billion $941.00 billion
2020 $737.90 billion $219.20 billion $53.10 billion $1.00 trillion

C. To cover the $900b budget deficit the following taxes need to be raised:
1. Raise the top tax rate about 7% above 2016 levels +$400b
2. Implement a new 3% Fed sales tax +$400b (aka VAT)
3. Implement a new transaction tax on all stocks & bonds Impose a Tax on Financial Transactions | Congressional Budget Office +$100b (stops hi-frequency traders)
4. Implement a new remittances tax/fee on all money sent out of the US https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2018/05/tax_remittances_can_build_the_wall.html 2% of $140b is +$3b a year


D. Reform entitlements, Medicare & Social Security, currently projected to be insolvent:

Social Security will be unable to meet obligations (not technically "bankrupt") in 2034, paying only 79% of owed benefits, while it will be actually bankrupt around 2090.
Social Security fixes:
https://www.fool.com/retirement/2018/05/21/how-warren-buffett-thinks-we-should-fix-social-sec.aspx
https://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/planning-to-retire/2014/11/14/5-potential-social-security-fixes
https://www.aarp.org/work/social-security/info-05-2012/future-of-social-security-proposals.html

Medicare will be insolvent in 2026
Medicare Fixes:
https://www.fool.com/retirement/general/2016/03/27/7-ways-to-fix-medicare.aspx
https://thehill.com/opinion/healthcare/369151-fix-what-weve-got-and-make-medicare-right-this-year
https://www.nationalaffairs.com/publications/detail/how-to-save-and-fix-medicare
https://www.aarp.org/content/dam/aarp/health/medicare-and-medicaid/2012-05/The-Future-Of-Medicare.pdf

Why is your only "raise taxes" option to "raise taxes and cut entitlements"? Why not "raise taxes and cut the military"?

If the USA isn't going to have hundreds of thousands of troops stationed around the world, how many men and how much equipment do you need? If you're not going to get involved in other people's domestic wars, why do you need to spend ALL of this money on a war machine and then let all of this stuff get rusty.

You're absolutely clueless. Were you always as stupid as you are now? Did it creep up on you or did it pounce all of a sudden or were you simply born stupid and have stayed that way?

So in other words, you've got nothing.

What works in every other first world country is impossible for you. That's why your standard of living in the USA is dropping for everyday people.

Homelessness exists in California because rents are higher than wages. Even white collar workers can't make the rent. This isn't sustainable in long haul.

Unless wages rise dramatically, it's going to get worse. Trump's solution is load more taxes on the middle and working class, and cut more tax breaks for millionaires..

 

[Thinker101]

The US keeps borrowing money, $23T and counting, and that is "unsustainable" as reported by the GAO.
National debt of the United States - Wikipedia

The rest of the world appears to be more responsible.
How do US taxes compare internationally?
View attachment 304081

So to Balance the Budget and start paying down the Debt the US needs to seriously revamp the tax code. Here are my recommendations for a return to fiscal sanity:
A. Hire another "Grace Commission" to audit and fix the Federal budget deficit

B. Cut Spending $625b a year
1. Cut defense to 2017 levels of $600b until the Debt is reduced, saving $150b
2. Cut foreign aid $55b (until Debt is paid we can't borrow to give money away)
3. Cut Welfare $200b & Medicaid $200b (about half)
4. Cut education $20b (state responsibility)

US Government Defense Spending History with Charts - a www.usgovernmentspending.com briefing
Current US Defense Spending:
Year Military Veterans Foreign Aid Total Defense
2017 $598.70 billion $178.00 billion $46.30 billion $823.00 billion
2018 $631.20 billion $180.40 billion $49.00 billion $860.50 billion
2019 $684.60 billion $202.10 billion $54.30 billion $941.00 billion
2020 $737.90 billion $219.20 billion $53.10 billion $1.00 trillion

C. To cover the $900b budget deficit the following taxes need to be raised:
1. Raise the top tax rate about 7% above 2016 levels +$400b
2. Implement a new 3% Fed sales tax +$400b (aka VAT)
3. Implement a new transaction tax on all stocks & bonds Impose a Tax on Financial Transactions | Congressional Budget Office +$100b (stops hi-frequency traders)
4. Implement a new remittances tax/fee on all money sent out of the US https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2018/05/tax_remittances_can_build_the_wall.html 2% of $140b is +$3b a year


D. Reform entitlements, Medicare & Social Security, currently projected to be insolvent:

Social Security will be unable to meet obligations (not technically "bankrupt") in 2034, paying only 79% of owed benefits, while it will be actually bankrupt around 2090.
Social Security fixes:
https://www.fool.com/retirement/2018/05/21/how-warren-buffett-thinks-we-should-fix-social-sec.aspx
https://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/planning-to-retire/2014/11/14/5-potential-social-security-fixes
https://www.aarp.org/work/social-security/info-05-2012/future-of-social-security-proposals.html

Medicare will be insolvent in 2026
Medicare Fixes:
https://www.fool.com/retirement/general/2016/03/27/7-ways-to-fix-medicare.aspx
https://thehill.com/opinion/healthcare/369151-fix-what-weve-got-and-make-medicare-right-this-year
https://www.nationalaffairs.com/publications/detail/how-to-save-and-fix-medicare
https://www.aarp.org/content/dam/aarp/health/medicare-and-medicaid/2012-05/The-Future-Of-Medicare.pdf

Why is your only "raise taxes" option to "raise taxes and cut entitlements"? Why not "raise taxes and cut the military"?

If the USA isn't going to have hundreds of thousands of troops stationed around the world, how many men and how much equipment do you need? If you're not going to get involved in other people's domestic wars, why do you need to spend ALL of this money on a war machine and then let all of this stuff get rusty.

You're absolutely clueless. Were you always as stupid as you are now? Did it creep up on you or did it pounce all of a sudden or were you simply born stupid and have stayed that way?

So in other words, you've got nothing.

What works in every other first world country is impossible for you. That's why your standard of living in the USA is dropping for everyday people.

Homelessness exists in California because rents are higher than wages. Even white collar workers can't make the rent. This isn't sustainable in long haul.

Unless wages rise dramatically, it's going to get worse. Trump's solution is load more taxes on the middle and working class, and cut more tax breaks for millionaires..

No kidding, the folks shooting up drugs and shitting in the streets have jobs?

 

[Andylusion]

The US keeps borrowing money, $23T and counting, and that is "unsustainable" as reported by the GAO.
National debt of the United States - Wikipedia

The rest of the world appears to be more responsible.
How do US taxes compare internationally?
View attachment 304081

So to Balance the Budget and start paying down the Debt the US needs to seriously revamp the tax code. Here are my recommendations for a return to fiscal sanity:
A. Hire another "Grace Commission" to audit and fix the Federal budget deficit

B. Cut Spending $625b a year
1. Cut defense to 2017 levels of $600b until the Debt is reduced, saving $150b
2. Cut foreign aid $55b (until Debt is paid we can't borrow to give money away)
3. Cut Welfare $200b & Medicaid $200b (about half)
4. Cut education $20b (state responsibility)

US Government Defense Spending History with Charts - a www.usgovernmentspending.com briefing
Current US Defense Spending:
Year Military Veterans Foreign Aid Total Defense
2017 $598.70 billion $178.00 billion $46.30 billion $823.00 billion
2018 $631.20 billion $180.40 billion $49.00 billion $860.50 billion
2019 $684.60 billion $202.10 billion $54.30 billion $941.00 billion
2020 $737.90 billion $219.20 billion $53.10 billion $1.00 trillion

C. To cover the $900b budget deficit the following taxes need to be raised:
1. Raise the top tax rate about 7% above 2016 levels +$400b
2. Implement a new 3% Fed sales tax +$400b (aka VAT)
3. Implement a new transaction tax on all stocks & bonds Impose a Tax on Financial Transactions | Congressional Budget Office +$100b (stops hi-frequency traders)
4. Implement a new remittances tax/fee on all money sent out of the US https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2018/05/tax_remittances_can_build_the_wall.html 2% of $140b is +$3b a year


D. Reform entitlements, Medicare & Social Security, currently projected to be insolvent:

Social Security will be unable to meet obligations (not technically "bankrupt") in 2034, paying only 79% of owed benefits, while it will be actually bankrupt around 2090.
Social Security fixes:
https://www.fool.com/retirement/2018/05/21/how-warren-buffett-thinks-we-should-fix-social-sec.aspx
https://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/planning-to-retire/2014/11/14/5-potential-social-security-fixes
https://www.aarp.org/work/social-security/info-05-2012/future-of-social-security-proposals.html

Medicare will be insolvent in 2026
Medicare Fixes:
https://www.fool.com/retirement/general/2016/03/27/7-ways-to-fix-medicare.aspx
https://thehill.com/opinion/healthcare/369151-fix-what-weve-got-and-make-medicare-right-this-year
https://www.nationalaffairs.com/publications/detail/how-to-save-and-fix-medicare
https://www.aarp.org/content/dam/aarp/health/medicare-and-medicaid/2012-05/The-Future-Of-Medicare.pdf

So you want to raise taxes on the poor and middle class? Because that is how the rest of the world has higher taxes.
Are you openly in favor of harming the poor and middle class?

Maybe you don't comprehend the problem. The $23T Debt will eventually cause the whole economy and financial system to collapse.
The US dollar will be worthless. What happens to the poor and middle class when that happens?
The OP showed you that the rest of the world pays higher taxes and don't pay $400b a year in interest on their Debt.
So stop whining about the fucking poor and middle class, and try to see the fucking iceberg dead ahead.

Cut spending.

Look, taxing the rich doesn't work. You can't point to a single country anywhere in the world, which has taxed the rich, and had that plan work.

So you two option if you want to avoid destroying the country with debt.

A: Tax the poor and middle class, like France, which is why they had the Yellow Vest protests.
B: Cut spending. Maybe you can't just afford whatever the heck you want. Maybe you have to grow up, and be an adult, and say we don't have money for this.

Those are your two options. And by the way, option doesn't work. You jack up taxes, and you still don't have the money, which is exactly why France was jacking up taxes when they caused the Yellow Vest protests.

So option A, will eventually lead to option B anyway.

What an ignorant post!

1. Tax the rich;

2. Cut military spending, by half;

3. Transition to single payer, universal health care. Bring Big Pharma to heel;

4. Start investing in infratstructure and education;

5. Make retraining of the unemployed and underemployed production workers a priority;

6. Pass a $15 minimum wage.

OMG, we almost agree on something?!

1. Tax the rich; increase the top rate by 7% above 2018 levels

2. Cut military spending, by half; cut from $750b to $600b and end the endless wars

3. Transition to single payer, universal health care. Bring Big Pharma to heel; Fix Social Security & Medicare from going bankrupt

4. Start investing in infrastructure and education; those are state responsibilities per the Constitution

5. Retrain the unemployed, underemployed, & those entering the job market; free community college & job training i.e. the German model

6. Pass a $15 minimum wage maybe a $15 minimum for heads of households

1. Tax the rich; increase the top rate by 7% above 2018 levels

Does not work. Taxing the rich has never worked. Hasn't worked in Europe, nor anywhere else. Didn't work in US history either.

Increasing taxes on the rich, will merely result in the rich concealing their money, or moving it out of the country, or into other non-productive uses.

2. Cut military spending, by half; cut from $750b to $600b and end the endless wars

Where are these endless wars?
In 2010, you could have cut the military spending to ZERO, and still had social security going broke.
Moreover, you look around Europe, and you see that even with the US funding most of their national defense, they still don't have endless money for pensions. Greece has much higher tax rates than the US, and much lower military spending.... and they still go broke.

By the way, if you cut military spending in half, you can guarantee that world war 3 will break out. As the US has retreated, Russia and China have become more aggressive. This clearly evident.

3. Transition to single payer, universal health care. Bring Big Pharma to heel; Fix Social Security & Medicare from going bankrupt

Impossible. Bringing big pharma to heel, will result in fewer drugs. This is what we've seen in France, and elsewhere in the world. When there isn't a profit motivate to invest in new drugs, fewer new drugs are created.

Moreover, Social Security and Medicare simply can't be "fixed". There is no way to "fix" a system that is built on a ponzi scheme. If there was, then Bernie Madoff and Enron would have found it. You can't fix a system where you take from group B to pay for group A, in hopes that you'll be able to take from group C, to pay for group B. It doesn't work.

You want to "Fix" Social Security, privatize it. You want to fix medicare, Privatize it.

4. Start investing in infrastructure and education; those are state responsibilities per the Constitution

And investing in education is a ridiculous claim. We spend more money than any other country on the face of the Earth, and our kids come out not knowing basic math.

Most colleges enroll many students who aren’t prepared for higher education

We spend way too much on education.

Infrastructure spending, is a waste of money, if you don't have an economy that needs it. Further, if infrastructure spending did help the economy, then why didn't they fix all that infrastructure when Obama blew $800 Billion dollars? If all those things were so important, then why didn't they fix anything? Why was the 2009 recovery the worst economic recovery in the entire history of the US?

5. Retrain the unemployed, underemployed, & those entering the job market; free community college & job training i.e. the German model

Doesn't work. We have nearly free education already. I know 3 people right now, going to school for free. Since we already have it, then why is it not working?

I have a co-worker right now, with a 4-year degree in physics, and he's working in a warehouse. He paid for his education. Why should I be forced to pay taxes, to pay for his degree that he's not using?

You can't just force people to 'retrain'. If they are willing to retrain, they would have paid for it themselves already, just like the rest of us. If they are not willing to retrain, you offering it for free, will just result in a waste of money.

We had retraining programs already. There was a scandal in Ohio, about people using the program to ride the buss around, without learning anything.

Retraining programs do not work.

6. Pass a $15 minimum wage maybe a $15 minimum for heads of households

Again, if you pass a $15 minimum wage, the result will be people simply don't have jobs.

If I hire you to mow my lawn for $40, and the government says that $40 for mowing a lawn is simply not enough, and I have to pay you $100 for mowing my lawn.... I'm not paying you $100 to mow my lawn, I'll buy a mower and enough gas for a year, and mow it myself.
You will simply be unemployed.

That's reality. The value of the labor, does not magically increase to meet your minimum wage. If a cheap fast food low-quality burger is only worth $6 to me... I'm not paying $15 for a burger because government says the minimum wage is $15/hour.

Why do you think a value meal in Denmark is almost $20, when they pay their employees $16/hour? Cause and effect. The prices goes up with the wage. Higher the price, the fewer people buy the stuff, and fewer people are employed.

The worst thing you can do is raise the minimum wage, because it cuts people off the bottom rung of the ladder. How can you claim the income ladder, when you can't even get on it? I know many people who worked their way up from the bottom rung.

In fact the CEO of Walmart today, started off as a warehouse employee. He started off at the bottom rung, and worked his way up.

 

[Andylusion]

US government taxes might be the lowest, but Trump administration spending is the highest.

It's not trickle-down economics, its trickle-down criminality from the most criminal administration ever.

Donald Trump is Bush 3 with an orange toupee.

That is one of the dumbest claims I've seen in awhile. But then, it fits your pattern.

 

[Dale Smith]

I barter my labor in one hour increments in exchange for fiat currency that has no intrinsic value. Where does USA.INC get off believing that they are entitled to 20 to 25 percent of the sweat of my brow that goes to pay interest on 'money" that was created out of thin air? They certainly didn't do 25 percent of my job nor did they create the conditions that allowed me to eek out an existence on this shitty prison planet. USA.INC was taken into receivership in 1950 to provide the 19 enumerated services in a "for profit" venture per their corporate charter constitution via the Act of 1871. USA.INC remains in a perpetual state of bankruptcy since March of 1933 where our labor was pledged as surety against the debt of USA.INC.

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

And Hillary would have lost 40%.

I'm thinking less than 5%...

Sorry, that shows you'd be another one not voting.....

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

The US keeps borrowing money, $23T and counting, and that is "unsustainable" as reported by the GAO.
National debt of the United States - Wikipedia

The rest of the world appears to be more responsible.
How do US taxes compare internationally?
View attachment 304081

So to Balance the Budget and start paying down the Debt the US needs to seriously revamp the tax code. Here are my recommendations for a return to fiscal sanity:
A. Hire another "Grace Commission" to audit and fix the Federal budget deficit

B. Cut Spending $625b a year
1. Cut defense to 2017 levels of $600b until the Debt is reduced, saving $150b
2. Cut foreign aid $55b (until Debt is paid we can't borrow to give money away)
3. Cut Welfare $200b & Medicaid $200b (about half)
4. Cut education $20b (state responsibility)

US Government Defense Spending History with Charts - a www.usgovernmentspending.com briefing
Current US Defense Spending:
Year Military Veterans Foreign Aid Total Defense
2017 $598.70 billion $178.00 billion $46.30 billion $823.00 billion
2018 $631.20 billion $180.40 billion $49.00 billion $860.50 billion
2019 $684.60 billion $202.10 billion $54.30 billion $941.00 billion
2020 $737.90 billion $219.20 billion $53.10 billion $1.00 trillion

C. To cover the $900b budget deficit the following taxes need to be raised:
1. Raise the top tax rate about 7% above 2016 levels +$400b
2. Implement a new 3% Fed sales tax +$400b (aka VAT)
3. Implement a new transaction tax on all stocks & bonds Impose a Tax on Financial Transactions | Congressional Budget Office +$100b (stops hi-frequency traders)
4. Implement a new remittances tax/fee on all money sent out of the US https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2018/05/tax_remittances_can_build_the_wall.html 2% of $140b is +$3b a year


D. Reform entitlements, Medicare & Social Security, currently projected to be insolvent:

Social Security will be unable to meet obligations (not technically "bankrupt") in 2034, paying only 79% of owed benefits, while it will be actually bankrupt around 2090.
Social Security fixes:
https://www.fool.com/retirement/2018/05/21/how-warren-buffett-thinks-we-should-fix-social-sec.aspx
https://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/planning-to-retire/2014/11/14/5-potential-social-security-fixes
https://www.aarp.org/work/social-security/info-05-2012/future-of-social-security-proposals.html

Medicare will be insolvent in 2026
Medicare Fixes:
https://www.fool.com/retirement/general/2016/03/27/7-ways-to-fix-medicare.aspx
https://thehill.com/opinion/healthcare/369151-fix-what-weve-got-and-make-medicare-right-this-year
https://www.nationalaffairs.com/publications/detail/how-to-save-and-fix-medicare
https://www.aarp.org/content/dam/aarp/health/medicare-and-medicaid/2012-05/The-Future-Of-Medicare.pdf

Why is your only "raise taxes" option to "raise taxes and cut entitlements"? Why not "raise taxes and cut the military"?

If the USA isn't going to have hundreds of thousands of troops stationed around the world, how many men and how much equipment do you need? If you're not going to get involved in other people's domestic wars, why do you need to spend ALL of this money on a war machine and then let all of this stuff get rusty.

You're absolutely clueless. Were you always as stupid as you are now? Did it creep up on you or did it pounce all of a sudden or were you simply born stupid and have stayed that way?

So in other words, you've got nothing.

What works in every other first world country is impossible for you. That's why your standard of living in the USA is dropping for everyday people.

Homelessness exists in California because rents are higher than wages. Even white collar workers can't make the rent. This isn't sustainable in long haul.

Unless wages rise dramatically, it's going to get worse. Trump's solution is load more taxes on the middle and working class, and cut more tax breaks for millionaires..

Homelessness exists in California because rents are higher than wages. Even white collar workers can't make the rent. This isn't sustainable in long haul.

When government regs restrict new construction, you get smaller supply and higher prices.
If Dems weren't such economic illiterates, they'd know this.

Trump's solution is load more taxes on the middle and working class,

Trump cut taxes on the middle and working class.

 

[Blues Man]

In answer to the title.
There is no law preventing anyone from paying more taxes than they have to. Just sit your ass right down, write out a check then send it in.
And until you do that, STFU because you have nothing to say.

Why would you do that when you know it will be used foolishly? We need a government that is responsible. Not one that gives tax cuts and increases spending.

Is it any less stupid than you voting for a Democrat? Hardly.

Well deficits were much lower at the end of Obama. Republicans make dems look not so bad.

The debt still went up.

EVERY single president since the 1930's regardless of party has increased the national debt.

My god man when all you have is "My guy didn't increase the debt as much as your guy" as a reason to vote you have not only drunk the Kool Aid but have asked for seconds

Yeah lets not point out why deficits just rapidly increased.... Trump is one of the WORST. Huge deficits during a strong economy and they are the direct result of his policy. The tax cuts flattened revenue and then he lead the way for spending increases with military spending.

No one cares about the debt

Not republicans, not democrats and not one person who has voted for either of those 2 parties.

Besides that 70% of the debt is made up of intragovernment debt where one part of the government owes money to another part of the government and the debt held by US banks and private investors.

US treasury bonds are a staple of many retirement funds so even though there is debt the interest on those bonds is going to Americans because only about 30% of the debt is held by foreign countries

So the debt isn't really as big of a problem as you think especially since you're like all the other partisan hacks out there who only care about it when the guy you didn't vote for adds to it

 

[kyzr]

So you want to raise taxes on the poor and middle class? Because that is how the rest of the world has higher taxes.
Are you openly in favor of harming the poor and middle class?

Maybe you don't comprehend the problem. The $23T Debt will eventually cause the whole economy and financial system to collapse.
The US dollar will be worthless. What happens to the poor and middle class when that happens?
The OP showed you that the rest of the world pays higher taxes and don't pay $400b a year in interest on their Debt.
So stop whining about the fucking poor and middle class, and try to see the fucking iceberg dead ahead.

Cut spending.

Look, taxing the rich doesn't work. You can't point to a single country anywhere in the world, which has taxed the rich, and had that plan work.

So you two option if you want to avoid destroying the country with debt.

A: Tax the poor and middle class, like France, which is why they had the Yellow Vest protests.
B: Cut spending. Maybe you can't just afford whatever the heck you want. Maybe you have to grow up, and be an adult, and say we don't have money for this.

Those are your two options. And by the way, option doesn't work. You jack up taxes, and you still don't have the money, which is exactly why France was jacking up taxes when they caused the Yellow Vest protests.

So option A, will eventually lead to option B anyway.

What an ignorant post!

1. Tax the rich;

2. Cut military spending, by half;

3. Transition to single payer, universal health care. Bring Big Pharma to heel;

4. Start investing in infratstructure and education;

5. Make retraining of the unemployed and underemployed production workers a priority;

6. Pass a $15 minimum wage.

OMG, we almost agree on something?!

1. Tax the rich; increase the top rate by 7% above 2018 levels

2. Cut military spending, by half; cut from $750b to $600b and end the endless wars

3. Transition to single payer, universal health care. Bring Big Pharma to heel; Fix Social Security & Medicare from going bankrupt

4. Start investing in infrastructure and education; those are state responsibilities per the Constitution

5. Retrain the unemployed, underemployed, & those entering the job market; free community college & job training i.e. the German model

6. Pass a $15 minimum wage maybe a $15 minimum for heads of households

1. Tax the rich; increase the top rate by 7% above 2018 levels

Does not work. Taxing the rich has never worked. Hasn't worked in Europe, nor anywhere else. Didn't work in US history either.


Increasing taxes on the rich, will merely result in the rich concealing their money, or moving it out of the country, or into other non-productive uses.

2. Cut military spending, by half; cut from $750b to $600b and end the endless wars

Where are these endless wars?
In 2010, you could have cut the military spending to ZERO, and still had social security going broke.
Moreover, you look around Europe, and you see that even with the US funding most of their national defense, they still don't have endless money for pensions. Greece has much higher tax rates than the US, and much lower military spending.... and they still go broke.

By the way, if you cut military spending in half, you can guarantee that world war 3 will break out. As the US has retreated, Russia and China have become more aggressive. This clearly evident.

3. Transition to single payer, universal health care. Bring Big Pharma to heel; Fix Social Security & Medicare from going bankrupt

Impossible. Bringing big pharma to heel, will result in fewer drugs. This is what we've seen in France, and elsewhere in the world. When there isn't a profit motivate to invest in new drugs, fewer new drugs are created.

Moreover, Social Security and Medicare simply can't be "fixed". There is no way to "fix" a system that is built on a ponzi scheme. If there was, then Bernie Madoff and Enron would have found it. You can't fix a system where you take from group B to pay for group A, in hopes that you'll be able to take from group C, to pay for group B. It doesn't work.

You want to "Fix" Social Security, privatize it. You want to fix medicare, Privatize it.

4. Start investing in infrastructure and education; those are state responsibilities per the Constitution

And investing in education is a ridiculous claim. We spend more money than any other country on the face of the Earth, and our kids come out not knowing basic math.

Most colleges enroll many students who aren’t prepared for higher education

We spend way too much on education.

Infrastructure spending, is a waste of money, if you don't have an economy that needs it. Further, if infrastructure spending did help the economy, then why didn't they fix all that infrastructure when Obama blew $800 Billion dollars? If all those things were so important, then why didn't they fix anything? Why was the 2009 recovery the worst economic recovery in the entire history of the US?

5. Retrain the unemployed, underemployed, & those entering the job market; free community college & job training i.e. the German model

Doesn't work. We have nearly free education already. I know 3 people right now, going to school for free. Since we already have it, then why is it not working?

I have a co-worker right now, with a 4-year degree in physics, and he's working in a warehouse. He paid for his education. Why should I be forced to pay taxes, to pay for his degree that he's not using?

You can't just force people to 'retrain'. If they are willing to retrain, they would have paid for it themselves already, just like the rest of us. If they are not willing to retrain, you offering it for free, will just result in a waste of money.

We had retraining programs already. There was a scandal in Ohio, about people using the program to ride the buss around, without learning anything.

Retraining programs do not work.

6. Pass a $15 minimum wage maybe a $15 minimum for heads of households

Again, if you pass a $15 minimum wage, the result will be people simply don't have jobs.

If I hire you to mow my lawn for $40, and the government says that $40 for mowing a lawn is simply not enough, and I have to pay you $100 for mowing my lawn.... I'm not paying you $100 to mow my lawn, I'll buy a mower and enough gas for a year, and mow it myself.
You will simply be unemployed.

That's reality. The value of the labor, does not magically increase to meet your minimum wage. If a cheap fast food low-quality burger is only worth $6 to me... I'm not paying $15 for a burger because government says the minimum wage is $15/hour.

Why do you think a value meal in Denmark is almost $20, when they pay their employees $16/hour? Cause and effect. The prices goes up with the wage. Higher the price, the fewer people buy the stuff, and fewer people are employed.

The worst thing you can do is raise the minimum wage, because it cuts people off the bottom rung of the ladder. How can you claim the income ladder, when you can't even get on it? I know many people who worked their way up from the bottom rung.

In fact the CEO of Walmart today, started off as a warehouse employee. He started off at the bottom rung, and worked his way up.

1. Increasing the taxes on the rich does work as long as there are no loopholes. We're not talking 90% tax rates like in the 1950's, but the top rate needs to increase 7%. If they want to hire tax lawyers and tee it up in court, fine.

2. Cutting military spending from $750b to about $600b is not a drastic cut. The Pentagon needs to do a better job of managing money. Speaking of WW3, it just might be the US military buildup that triggers it.

3. Medicare and SS can be fixed, easily. Read the OP and see the links to the various fixes.

4. Education and Infrastructure spending only when we have a surplus. Those are state responsibilities. Also, I want Universities to pay half of student loans, so if the kids can't repay they have skin in the game.

5. The "German model" gets kids and the unemployed ready for the work-force. They don't go to college for useless Art-History degrees. Two years free at a nearby community college ensures that the workers are trained for the jobs that exist.

6. OK, I agree that the minimum wage cannot be so high as to reduce jobs.

 

[22lcidw]

I barter my labor in one hour increments in exchange for fiat currency that has no intrinsic value. Where does USA.INC get off believing that they are entitled to 20 to 25 percent of the sweat of my brow that goes to pay interest on 'money" that was created out of thin air? They certainly didn't do 25 percent of my job nor did they create the conditions that allowed me to eek out an existence on this shitty prison planet. USA.INC was taken into receivership in 1950 to provide the 19 enumerated services in a "for profit" venture per their corporate charter constitution via the Act of 1871. USA.INC remains in a perpetual state of bankruptcy since March of 1933 where our labor was pledged as surety against the debt of USA.INC.

We all need to be educated in this. And thus used as part of the issues we talk about. But it never is. We need to understand a lot of our resources are taken from us and our governments through fiat currency slavery. Those who know how to play it, do well.

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

Why would you do that when you know it will be used foolishly? We need a government that is responsible. Not one that gives tax cuts and increases spending.

Is it any less stupid than you voting for a Democrat? Hardly.

Well deficits were much lower at the end of Obama. Republicans make dems look not so bad.

The debt still went up.

EVERY single president since the 1930's regardless of party has increased the national debt.

My god man when all you have is "My guy didn't increase the debt as much as your guy" as a reason to vote you have not only drunk the Kool Aid but have asked for seconds

Yeah lets not point out why deficits just rapidly increased.... Trump is one of the WORST. Huge deficits during a strong economy and they are the direct result of his policy. The tax cuts flattened revenue and then he lead the way for spending increases with military spending.

No one cares about the debt

Not republicans, not democrats and not one person who has voted for either of those 2 parties.

Besides that 70% of the debt is made up of intragovernment debt where one part of the government owes money to another part of the government and the debt held by US banks and private investors.

US treasury bonds are a staple of many retirement funds so even though there is debt the interest on those bonds is going to Americans because only about 30% of the debt is held by foreign countries

So the debt isn't really as big of a problem as you think especially since you're like all the other partisan hacks out there who only care about it when the guy you didn't vote for adds to it

Besides that 70% of the debt is made up of intragovernment debt where one part of the government owes money to another part of the government

26%

 

[DBA]

We have the worst inequality and upward mobility ever and in the modern world

This has to be the most ignorant, idiotic post of all time. Yeah, our upward mobility sucks which is why people from other countries flood into the US. The US is the land of opportunity. In many other countries, you are stuck in the class you were born. There is no getting out. Only a very uninformed person would think otherwise.

 

[DBA]

We were much less bad off before trump. His tax cuts flattened revenue and he lead the way with increased military spending.

Yeah, everything sure does suck right now. Wages up for everyone, full employment, great economy, great stock market...man, I can't imagine it being much worse.