Jonah on "Covetousness as Fiscal Policy"
In an interesting LA Times editorial, Jonah Goldberg points out that the rich aren't "made of money" and the continued attempt to milk them parallels the "curse" of despotic oil-rich nations. Excerpt:
Today, our politics seems to be suffering from a "rich people curse." We treat the rich like a constantly regenerating piñata, as if they will never change their behavior no matter how many times they get whacked by taxes. And we think everyone can live well off the goodies that will fall to the ground forever.
Of course, typical wage earners pay plenty of taxes, but not in ways that foster a sense of reciprocity with the government in Washington. Their biggest federal payment is the regressive payroll tax intended to fund Social Security and Medicare. And even though as a matter of accounting these payments are no different from any other taxes, they're sold simply as retirement and health insurance programs.
Meanwhile, Democrats keep telling the bottom 95% of taxpayers that all of America's problems will be solved if only the rich people would pay "their fair share" of income taxes. Not only is this patently untrue and a siren song toward a welfare state, it amounts to covetousness as fiscal policy.
Read the whole thing. Jonah is always humorous, even though he uses the word indeed too much. On the other hand, I probably use the word humorous too much, as well as the word excerpt.
Heh.
ReplyDeleteNot on subject, but Pauli, that American Thinker article hit piece on Ron Paul in your "pile of stuff" is thoroughly despicable. This equation of opposing the war and not being wholly uncritical of Israel with anti-semitism is so tiresome. Complete ad hominem at its sleaziest. I hope you're reading with a critical eye.
ReplyDeleteExplain to me what is despicable about it. Besides, the congressman could make it all go away by just distancing himself from Don Black et al and returning the money.
ReplyDeleteAhhhh....money. Even Ron Paul loves the smell of those Federal Reserve notes.
I think I will do an "Is Ron Paul a Nazi" post just to get hits from the ragin' Pauliacs.
It's despicable because of its insinuation that because a man running for president accepted a (rather modest) campaign donation from someone who turned out to be a Nazi, and has declined so far to give it back, this makes him a Nazi. This is reprehensible slander, and you know it, or should know it.
ReplyDeletePaul has no truck with Nazi ideology. What in his record as a congressman would suggest otherwise? He's a libertarian and a Christian who's against the war in Iraq. He's succeeded in raising a lot of money, and in so doing has apparently frightened the wits out of a lot of bigwigs and high mucky-mucks of our political process, who are now trying desperately to orchestrate his demise.
Paul has no truck with Nazi ideology.... He's... a Christian...
ReplyDeleteThat should make it even easier for his campaign to make a statement. Who cares if he pisses these white supremacists off?
Andrew Sullivan has predicted that Paul needs to and will make a statement about this. I hope he's right.
As I commented on another site, I don't think Paul is a Nazi -- or an "enemy of Israel", but he is going the plausible deniability route via his silence and it's making him look bad.