As of 2006, the United States had one of the highest levels of income inequality, as measured through the Gini Index among high income countries comparable to that of some middle income countries such as Russia or Turkey, being one of only few developed countries where inequality has increased since 1980.
We are becoming a Nation of the “Haves and the Have Nots”
So why is it that our Republican leaders are all calling for tax breaks for the job producers at the cost to the wage earners? If you think this is rhetoric look at the cuts to education grants like Pell as well as the proposed plan by congressman Paul Ryan that would eliminate Medicare and Medicaid’s current reimbursement scheme by providing beneficiaries with tax credits.
It is the conventional wisdom among republicans that US companies pay a disproportionately higher tax rate when compared to our foreign competitors, despite the fact that many companies exploit loopholes in the system to avoid paying. To add to that, US wages are disproportionately higher especially when compared to India and China which is the main driver for outsourcing. Together this makes for an unfriendly playing field.
So if you look closely, the plan is to level that unfriendly playing field by paying wage earners less and taxing companies less. It may sound like a simple solution but WTF? You mean to tell me that the only way these people can bring back the glory of the US exports is to decrease our standard of living to that of China and India? That would explain the current assault on Unions that protect wages.
If you’ve read my blogs you know I’m a pretty progressive and sometimes open to the occasional conspiracy theory but this is an outright attack on our way of life, on the American Dream that has attracted so many from all over the world. During the Clinton administration taxes were high for all but the budget was balanced and we even had a surplus. Now the Republicans are trying to sell this idea that average Americans need to tighten our belts more, while the top 5% enjoy more tax breaks. Something does not compute.
How can a government perpetrate a fraud of this nature without risking an all out rebellion? The key is information. By the coordinated efforts of disinformation and poor education you produce a nation of sheep that can easily be lead. Cuts to Pell grants which have provided an avenue for the education of lower income Americans is starting to make sense. Distractions by our so called news organizations and the media would explain why more Americans know more about the candidates on America’s Top Model than our leaders and more vote in American Idol than any of our primaries. We are becoming sheep and it’s not a good thing.
It’s becoming harder to do anything as the middle class is becoming an endangered species. The only answer is to be informed and get involved.
The time is now my friends.
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