Allen West, uncut: A candid conversation with South Florida's rising Tea Party star.

Allen West, uncut: A candid conversation with South Florida's rising Tea Party star.
From: Miami New Times

Q: Despite those cuts to the Medicare program, the Ryan plan sustains the Bush-era tax cuts for the wealthy, versus Obama's plan —

West: I want you all to stop talking about tax cuts for the wealthy10... Small business owners operate as S corporations at personal income tax rates... So at a time when we're trying to get more Americans hired, you're basically saying you're going to raise taxes on small business owners, which is not going to enable them to grow their businesses. And these top brackets pay 40 percent of taxes in the United States of America, so when is it enough?

Q: The Bush-era tax cuts, which you have supported and which would be continued under the Ryan plan — they are for wealthy Americans; they're not just for small businesses.

West: They're for people that produce. And $250,000 — I mean, I don't know why we have people arbitrarily deciding who is rich or who is poor. That's a very socialist perspective.

Read more at: http://www.miaminewtimes.com/2011-05-12/news/allen-west-uncut/

In many cases they "collect" dividends and bonuses that are often not based on any credible performance. Ran the company into bankruptcy? We have to pay "retention bonuses" so you can continue to fire people and dismantle the company under court supervision.Didn't produce any shareholder value? we must pay you those tens of millions in bonuses because, after all, contracts are sacrosanct (well, unless you're a union worker and then it's fair game.)

Generally, the answer is "no." Yet, the way I read West's comment, the owner of a grocery store (for example) making $250,000 is "productive", but those stocking the shelves and checking out the customers and bagging the groceries are not.

They've been carrying the rich's water for years and years. Ever since I started paying close attention in the late 80's it's the same thing: Prosperity is only good if visits a select group of people. When executives "earn" lots of money, it's "good for the economy", ostensibly because they'll spend and generate economic activity....typical trickle down bullshit. If the working class is prosperous, suddenly their en-masse spending power is superfluous: The RW media/pundits express it instead as a drag on the economy, because it makes things more expensive for "consumers"....who have all apparently left the building, having replaced all the citizens.