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Tim Geithner on The Privilege of Being An American
Last Friday Turbo Timmah sat down with CNBC's "chief economics correspondent" Steve Liesman. There were many pieces to this interview that were annoying (such as saying oil prices are the result of the economy getting better), but the line that should have gotten everyone's attention was this one:
"if you don't ask the most fortunate Americans to bear a slightly larger burden of the privilege of being American, then the only way to achieve fiscal sustainabilty is through unacceptably deep cuts"
Really Tim, for the privilege of being an American people who have achieved success can pay more in taxes? Excellent. There was once a guy named George who said the same type of stuff back in the 1770's.
Let's start with perhaps having the growing amount of Americans who aren't paying ANYTHING in Federal taxes pay something - anything. You know, in the name of "fair share" and all.
Then maybe let's get to work on actually CUTTING SPENDING at the Federal level. Although some enjoy saying Government spending isn't like a personal budget, there is no magic to this. If you have "x" in revenues, you can only spend "x" in expenses. Cash in / Cash out is a pretty easy concept in which you (contrary to popular belief) do not need a Phd to grasp.
The President's (and thus Timmah's) most recent budget proposal not only does not cut spending, but it actually ignores the mandated spending cuts put in place by the budget control act.
While we're on the privileges of being American, one of the biggest privileges is paying taxes to the Goverment so we can bail out the world (currently Greece) via the IMF.
The United States' quota is 17.7% of the total IMF yearly budget - by far the most by any country. As of the latest quarterly statement the IMF had ~137,645 million SDR's, or ~$215 billion dollars on hand (not enough advil to go look at how much has been lent out.
Let's take a moment & point out what Americans do on their OWN, without being forced, with their hard earned money. America is an incredibly charitable nation, not only to countries around the world, but for causes domestically as well. The following breakdown shows just how much people give (again, ON THEIR OWN) to people less fortunate. This 2006 chart shows Americans gave ~$222 Billion dollars (billions, with a B).
So before you lecture us about what we should do with our money for the "privilege" of being Americans, try balancing a budget, or cutting spending, or NOT BAILING OUT THE WORLD WITH OUR TAX DOLLARS. Then we can talk about how much extra you need to play your games, you pompous ass.
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That's just a promotional video for Turbo Tax.
CROSS my border, and I'll hand you a Ballot! CHAD FREE!
Rich people are able to excersize more of their potential freedoms. A poor person doesnt use the airports bridges and tunnels or run the trucks from his factory on public roads nearly as much as the .01% person. For a rich person to rationalize paying tha same as their secretary shows shamelessness and childlike me first attitude. If only the rich would be leaders like Bill Gates and Warren Bueffet and the many other philantropist billionaires. It's really a sad thing that all that power and respect is overcome by an abundance in vanity and greed.
People who are on welfare aren't paying taxes. So they aren't paying for any infrastructure. If they are disabled, they deserve help. If they are able bodied, but produce nothing, then they deserve nothing.
You are a nothing but a parasite on society, encouraging others to do the same.
Dear Captain Kurtz,
I read your comment. My Boomer parents use the same airports, roads and bridges shibboleth whenever they try to dodge the implications of massive federal spending, or to justify its increase.
Unfortunately, airports, roads & bridges are not what the feds spend our taxes on. Unless you count such gratuitous boondoggles as airports, roads, & bridges built in Iraq or Afghanistan as infrastructure spending, or being of some benefit to the taxpayers who paid for them.
Off the top of my head, of every Federal tax dollar:
.50 to the War machine.
.20 to the Banksters.
.20 to the Wealth Transfers.
So .10 to airports, roads, and bridges? Probably less than that, in reality. I'm fairly sure the Pharmaceutical Lobby alone takes down more than roads & bridges under this budget scenario.
Faulty explanation via wishful ideations is a Boomer specialty. As I said, I hear the same fanciful rationalizations from my parents when discussing National Debt: "but we owe it to ourselves"; or government borrowing: "deficits don't matter". Their responses are predictable and demonstrably false. However, they are quite well-spread. Whether the Propaganda was "catapulted" via TV or Public Schooling, I can't determine.
Not to characterize you unfairly (or even as a Boomer fool), but your argument is simply not based in reality. The shibboleths must fall. The feds don't spend the majority of our taxes on airports, roads, and bridges.
Regards,
Beef
In your breakdown of the use of each federal dollar, you are forgetting the growing chunk of that dollar that goes to fund the overspending of the same categories over many previous years.
Hey, Captain, I've got a math problem for you? Which is greater? 15% of $100,000 or 15% of $1,000,000.
Now who is contributing the most funds to the government? That's the only important question. The rate is really quite unimportant, except in the limit of 0 or 100%.
The more relevant math problem is:
10 Families each making $100,000 paying 30%+ (FICA 15% + FIT 15%) = $300,000
vs
One Wall Street Bankster paying 15% Capital Gains Tax on $1,000,000 "carried interest" = $150,000
The rate actually is important.
The 15% rate is on "at risk" money. You know, the kind that makes jobs.
The 15% rate on dividends has already been paid at the coporate rate of 35%.
Signed,
Risk Taker and Corporate Taxpayer
(You are a moron.)
"at risk" money...
The only income at risk of being taxed is that which hs been left exposed to taxation. Timmy's system allows "lawful" deductions including whatever lavish lifestyle needed to produce an income. Ask real estate brokers driving leased luxury vehicles. No way any taxpayer should have to pay anything once one considers all the expenses needed to produce frn ledger credits. You don't think Hollywood looks and lifestyles are free do you?
This is like a taxpayer that pays taxes on gambling winnings when the taxpayer is allowed to deduct losses in an amount equal to the amount won. Of course all the winnings went back to the house. I signed the return making it a legal document and I said so. Prove I didn't.
Whether it is food or T-shirts or Nike shoes, the poor all have them delivered by trucks on the highway.
Costs don't matter for them as Obama pays their bills.
Buffet is a lying shill. The company pays the corporate tax rate, even if it never pays a dividend to Uncle Warren. Except when BRK does not pay and has to be sued for $1 Billion in back taxes. Obama, Buffet, Biden and Corzine are all failed manipulators of the system they advanced for their own benefit.
The FAA is funded from landing fees which are collected by airlines and built into the price of a ticket. Bridges and roads are largely paid by Federal and State gas taxes which are forms of user fees. So technically, those you describe as "rich" do pay for these services.
FAA is also funded from tax on aviation gas and jet fuel, which, speaking of breaks for oligarchs, is not assessed on the airlines, who are the biggest users of the National Air Traffic System. Despite the heavy subsidies, the Airlines want to shut General Aviation out of more and more of the NATS because it is inconvenient to their plans to actually have to share it with the people who are paying for it.
your sarcasim reallly is funny. keep it up.
I couldnt get past the chart showing the rising amount of americans not paying taxes. This argument is so invalid its not even funny. People that dont pay taxes are primarily two types - those who dont make enough, and criminals (notice how i didnt distinguish whether these were rich or poor). So basically what this trend is showing is that an increasing amount of people are either too poor to pay taxes or criminals. Well then, maybe we need to tax the criminals and not the poor people then. Because as the saying goes, you cant squeeze blood out of a stone.
So those who legally utilize tax laws to their advantage are criminals? Interesting concept. I think you must be a social engineer at heart too.
You don't have a right to anyone else's income, no matter how much you may want it. Our Bill of Rights gives us the right to stop anyone who tries.
Define "poor". A recent study showed that a family of 4 would have to earn wage income of roughly $60,000 to be as well off in terms of standard of living as the same family of 4 who were totally out of a job but who were receiving benefits and in-kind aid from government.
My bullshit detector just went off... HOW ABOUT CITING THE REPORT YOU REFERENCE!!!!!
Oh can't because.......
a: you forgot were you read it?
b: you kinda read the numbers wrong?
c: you made it up?
But thanks for the laugh.....
Perhaps the $60,000 figure of implied federal benefits is inflated, perhaps not. I too would like to see the report and methods.
However imputed, the Marxist-redistributionist transfers from workers to non-workers is not inconsiderable. Given the myriad Federal programs to plunder the working and give to the non-, I assume simply totaling up the entire expense of Redistributionist Policies currently in Effect, to be a Herculean Accounting Task.
Actually eliminating said Un-American Policies would be analogous to the Legend of The Augean Stables.
Everyone pays sales and property taxes. This is just Federal income taxes ... and it doesn't include wage withholdings for SSN and Medicare (of which everyone who eventually uses it must pay for).
Ugghh .... you have to own property to pay property taxes. And you must have an "on the books" job to pay SS and Medicare. So millions and millions don't actually pay property, SS, and Medicare taxes.
If you rent you are paying property taxes indirectly through your land lord. Those without "on the books" jobs don't get Soclal Security. Everyone pays consumption taxes, license fees, etc... either directly or indirectly.
Yeah and if I'm homeless living under a bridge, own nothing except the rags I'm wearing but hold a single Dollar bill in my fist, I pay taxes by the continuing devaluation of that Dollar caused by gov't unsustainable (aka unrepayable) deficits
Isn't that the purpose of the Alternative Minimum Tax?
I thought it was to make sure those living the Alternative Lifestyle paid some minimum tax.
thought balloon
does this mean elpresidente doesn't pay taxes or ain't an American
deleted
Good question.
It appears he & Michelle Antionette get all the benefits of a billionaire lifestyle without paying the commensurate taxes of one(s) enjoying such a lifestyle.
It's good to be king, if just for a while...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SF1iLXSQto&ob=av2e
The message that the Obamas are sending is very simple and very intentional: "power" is the new "money".
The currency of his realm.
Believe me that these guys are getting bold about threatening the wage earners. Prepare for the worst.
They are as subtle as a fart in church
I wonder how this will play out
And what was the number of executive branch employees who correctly' filed but just say fuck it, I am not paying. 180 owe 700 mm. I think.
At the federal level 900 people owe 1.something billion.
Like the sec, if the IRS went after that low hanging fruit, it would be years till they could audit your cheating forms
Old saying: "Man who fart in Church must sit in own pew."
groan...... lolol
Doesn't this come from the same guy who was delinquent on his own taxes???
Geithner committed tax fraud by not paying self-employment taxes in 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 $43,000.00. The IMF made it impossible to not have known this was taxable income.
“I hereby certify that all the information contained herein is true to the best of my knowledge and belief and that I will pay the taxes for which I have received tax allowance payments from the Fund.” The scumbag signed this 4 fucking years in a row. Effing psychopathic liar!
Timmy is a born and bred leech. His father is Peter Geithner, who "worked"( NGO and govt types don't really work in the way known to most everyone else on Earth) in China for the Ford Foundation, a commie outfit, they tap into our earnings.
This is where Timmie the Tick picked up some Chinese language skills. Nothing to be impressed about, most kids pick up languages naturally, but in his case I doubt he could order fried rice in Chinese.
PGeithner also oversaw Indonesia were one Stanley Ann Dunham was his employee. Her little boy was about the same age as Timmy. Did the money for Hawaiian prep school come from this source?
He went to business school in Thailand and was awarded the Order of the Elephant, or something. Does anyone have a copy of his transcript?
Then he got put in charge of the thriving and rapidly growing Indonesian economy back in the early 90's and the whole thing crashed. Who wudda thunk. Oh, well. he's gotta start somewhere, right?
So now we're stuck with Dummy Timmy and he's in charge of our Treasury even though he can't manage his own taxes. By the way, what reason did he give that let him off the hook? Can we all use it or is it just for DC grifters?
Hey - any sign of that transcript yet?
fleur de lis: read up a little more on Dunham and you'll see that her second husband promoted the rebels in Indonesia that overthrew the gov and brought in the banking oligarchs and everything that comes with it. So mr. president grew up in the cartel-bank, leftie atmosphere. Other Obama associations associated with bank cartels:
http://wtpotus.wordpress.com/2010/05/22/tital-wave-set-to-hit-shorebank-and-its-cronies/
http://knowledgecreatespower.blogspot.com/2010/05/shore-bank-obamas-mother-and-geithners.html
http://directorblue.blogspot.com/2010/06/obamas-shorebank-jeremiah-wrights-10.html
"Timmie the Tick"
That would look good on a deck of playing cards. Jack of Diamonds, maybe?
But The Honorable Secretary Treasurer works extreemly hard managing the nation's coffers. One shouldn't be expected to pay taxes on funds that have already been taxed. That would be double dipping by taxing the same dollars twice, right?
Only ZH'ers will know Dunham was Obama's mother ;-)
Defintion of an Assclown: Timothy Franz Geithner
AKA Hamy.
FUCK YOU TURBO TIMMY .... to use the words of the sick, stupid, lame and lazy .... that's not FAIR!!!
Those are the words of Barmey Fwanke.
"if you don't ask the most fortunate Americans to bear a slightly larger burden of the privilege of being American, then the only way to achieve fiscal sustainabilty is through unacceptably deep cuts"
I'm all for deep cuts among the criminal financial class, as in guillotine cuts.
After that, some deep cuts in Marxist-redistributionist policies, as in re-aligning incentives toward work, production, saving and investment.
As a member of the exploited class, I'm all for deep cuts in the Exploiters. Anyone else agree?