Service Cuts Come From Low Taxes

Run time: 01:49 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2aicRvQkHts   Posted on YouTube: May 11, 2010 By YouTube Member: lauraflanders Views on YouTube: 5   Posted on DU: May 12, 2010 By DU Member: mystieus Views on DU: 1201

 
Across the U.S., in virtually all states and localities, government is on the verge of, or has already, stopped providing essential services.

Oh, DLC.

My bad.

3% of the wealth in America, is all that is owned by 80% of its citizens. A million protesters, out of the millions of dispossessed, would go along way to change the current policies.

...it would require a constitutional ammendment.

Wealth is not income.

but it is a pretty good indicator of a persons financial capabilities....I am talking about a huge day of protests that would hopefully make our (lower "socio-economic" class) anger evident. That would make some economic policy changes necessary.
What "constitutional amendment" are you talking about? Raising taxes on the wealthy to approximately 1970 levels? I'm not sure "what" would take a constitutional amendment...

Wealth and income are different things. I could make nothing this year and be wealthy. Likewise, I could make $1m this year and not be wealthy.

Do a little research on direct taxes and why the 16th ammendment exists.

I was asking you why this called for a "constitutional amendment." I really don't want to play word games with you. I am confident that others understood exactly what I was saying. you bet'cha ;-)

The truly wealthy, the ones in that own everything, the ones you are complaining about, don't make much of their income as earned income, it's almost all capital gains. Even if you start taxing them more, that will not change the fact that they still own everything.

If you want to tax wealth, which is what people own, that would require a constitutional amendment. If you don't understand why that would require a constitutional amendment, call your high school baseball coach and ask him why he didn't do his job in the government classes he didn't want to teach.

It's not word games, there's a very large difference between wealth and income and glossing over that difference only allows ignorance of reality to fester.

you bet'cha? wtf?

and/or reinstating taxes on dividends, do not require a "constitutional amendment." Which didn't have a whole helluva lot to do with my original post anyway...My original post referred to organizing a large number of the disenfranchised (which is still a small percentage of them/us). A separate matter of holding new "constitutional conventions" among the people, to determine a new course for our country, wouldn't require an amendment either.In fact, with the newly enabled Unitary Executive powers (which did need, but was never obtained, a constitutional amendment in this continual terra war),a "wealth tax" could be implemented, again without an amendment, just like the VAT tax that is all the rage among the corporatists. Possibly, I should consult with one of my old college poly.sci. professors. I doubt my H.S. baseball(?) coach is still alive.

allows Article I, Section 9 to be ignored?

BTW, I'm not disputing any sort of income, VAT, excice, etc. tax.

I'm being pretty specific in that taxing "wealth" (which is the only true way to adjust the 80/3 ratio you mentioned in your original post) is not a federal thing. States? Sure. Federal? No.

"a "wealth tax" could be implemented, again without an amendment, just like the VAT tax that is all the rage among the corporatists."

And I couldn't help but coming back to comment on how it so blatantly shows you still don't realize what the hell you are talking about. If you don't understand why a wealth tax is not constitutional, stop trying to pretend you do. The VAT tax and a wealth tax are two completely different beasts as far as constitutionality goes. The 16th amendment allows a VAT but Article 1 strictly prohibits a "wealth tax" unless it's given directly back to the states based solely on population.

Seriously, ignorance is not bliss. Unless you want to continue barking with no bite, go read the 16th amendment and research the reasons for its existence.

TAXES IS THE INCOME LEVELING TOOL WHICH "FLATTENS" THE PLAYING FIELD...
IT IS THE DONATION THE WEALTHY PAY TO SOCIETY FOR THE RIGHT TO BE WEALTHY AND NOT LOSE THEIR HEADS

AS A PART OF CLASS WARFARE, IT IS IN EFFECT, THE PROTECTION MONEY PAID TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD TO KEEP THE CASTLE FROM BEING STORMED

...WHEN THE WEALTHY COLLABORATE, AND SHARE, THIS SYSTEM WORKS
...WHEN THE WEALTHY BECOME TOOOO GREEDY, AND EVEN AMONGST THEMSELVES CANNOT AGREE ON HOW MUCH TO REMOVE THEIR FOOT FROM THE THROAT OF THE WORKERS
THAT IS WHEN YOU SEE THE WORKERS STEP UP... AND THAT IS WHEN THE WEALTHY WILL AGAIN RELEASE MORE TO THE POPULATION

ME Generation of the 80's, the X-Generations of the 90's, the witty, but language deprived social media typo-ridden crowds of the 2000's?

How do you get these labels off and grow a collective rage? How do we drop the subjects of who we are and recognize a common objective? How do we keep the intellectuals from ignoring the ignorant, and the ignorant from bullying them? Can we get a collective here?

What kind of song do we need to release to unite this motley crew of American folks who think their freedoms have something to do with the expression of wit, or force, violence, coercion and greed?

I suppose the starting point might be to recognize one thing we all still have in common is that We Are Alive which is more than we can say about the countless victims of war, crime and disease. This daily attack on our peace of mind, these man-made and intentionally directed disasters, surround and confound our collective thinking and cloud our feelings to keep us from reconciliation.

Once we accept what is so, we can participate in ways that undermine the dinosaurs and dismantle their castles. We must generate alternative experiences to override the forces of destruction to realize our creative power again to know how to dissolve dinosaur industries fraught with dying owners who fear their oncoming deaths and respond with destruction.

We have alternative ways to keep our earth clean and our people happy. All of this extraordinary destruction is coordinated by less than 10% of the population with the help of media. Let us not blindly and dutifully walk into the ovens to satisfy the needs of greed. Let us watch while the beautiful Gulf of Mexico, now enveloped in oil, ravages the southern states, where most of these rich gun toting revelers live. And when the time is right, lets us set fire to their thoughts, their beliefs, and their fictions with song, and watch them burn in their own man made hell. Let us cleverly find ways to wipe out their wealth, jam their intentions, and their hold on life as we know it on planet earth. Politics are but words, believed. Do not believe, but act to move away from destruction as we watch the last of them finally and fully die off. Their karma is great, and mother earth will back-fire to rid herself of such filth.

We can help her when she is done, cleaning up the damage with an awareness and a vision, to never poke or provoke her again.

We can start by collectively calling in sick. And while you are out, check out the impact on your own psyche from listening to the power of songs. Its free and easy listening, and when you find something you can relate to pass them around the country. Music has the means to empower us. Share your meaning making tunes as well. We can be artful in our plot to wipe out greed. It is way more healthy. Listen up and jam!

Unfortunately, politics and their resultant legislation then become enforced and take own their own power, which feeds into the existing system. I thought the large protests along with some new "constitutional conventions", we have the advantage of "skype" and other distance shrinking tools that could help us articulate as a large population (who may or may not choose republic style representation) to demand changes. Hopefully by using the wake-up tactic, we could be large enough (one million should be easy) to require some elected representation to write and voice our grievances in addition to the initial non-violent demonstration. As for who? Americans. The people from all generations , walks of life, ethnicities, preferences....we are the majority we have been waiting for. Our numbers, once aroused, can cause a great shift. Realistically, we will face forceful opposition. Power is not given up easily. Hopefully our numbers will minimize that. It can work..
BTW, Laura Flanders is a great lady.