Forums Index >> General >> The Common Good
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Good post LGM.
I'm not a citizen of your country, but I hear you, as way to unify the people the current administration have been playing the card of 'the enemy outside' (à la 'red menace') for way too long - a sort of nagative way to unite people.How many times can you cry 'WOLF'?
And yes, for all the bad stuff I said about Microsoft and Windowze, the Gates/Buffet due and Gates' 'billanthropy' is impressive. Sort of redeemed himself there. 'Steal from everyone and give back to the poorest'. :)
I saw that on PBS too. Amusing to hear them have that opinion, as it makes one wonder who is responsible for the propaganda about the "oppressive" tax burden in the U.S.. It is an appeal to the aspirations of the less-than rich's with lies, exformation and disinformation to get them to vote republican. "Protect your future wealth! The Dems want your cash!" Meanwhile, the fat cats dine on champagne and caviar, deny a raise in the minimum wage, then give themselves pay raises. As the adage goes, nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the american public.
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I don't know that I'm buying into the whole estate tax idea. Personally, I don't like it, no matter how small it may be or where its going.
Any estate has presumably been taxed already, during the years it was being built and created. "Mr. Smith" spent a lifetime paying taxes on what he owned and what he earned. I think the State and Feds have had plenty of opportunities to get what they had a "right" to take during that time. So the estate tax is just one more opportunity to take a swing at the fortune of "Mr Smith".
Somehow, it just doesn't seem right.
I have to agree with Rabban. The money has already been taxed. The problem, as I see it, is that the tax hurts the working man not the rich. I live in a rural area and see, first-hand, what it does to the small farming families in my area. The small family farm (those that farm around a thousand acres or less) have several million dollars in land and equipment, when the parents (owners) die the children are saddled with a tax bill that usually requires the selling of the family farm to pay. The children, who have worked and lived on the farm all of their lives, end up having to find another way to make a living. I see this a lot...is that fair??
Go green! Vote Nader!
Ah dang, flea is going to be pissed. I need to go find a Fox news blog...
Side tracking via death tax fellers...
Common good is the theme. I'm just so ticked LGM referenced me with billy clinton and billy gates! That makes my whole day!
Think I'll buy a new pair of shoes.
Chuck,
Just to clarify, this is a WA state issue, not a federal tax. The estate tax automatically exempts family farms...
Washington State's estate tax has been in existence since 1901. It's not a new tax or a tax increase. It used to be tied to the federal estate tax, but now it is separate.
Family farms are completely exempt, if at least 50% of the value is actually being used for farming. The estate tax does not force small businesses and family farms to liquidate their assets or go into bankruptcy, despite what anti-tax zealots would like you to think.
Timberlands are also exempt from the tax.
If the estate includes a family-owned business, the heirs have 15 years to pay off this tax.
Rabban,
This estate tax is not on top of previous taxes...
The revenue generated will come from only about 210 estates a year - and it's money that has not been taxed before. While most other states without the estate tax have an income tax or a capital gains tax, Washington does not.
And on top of that, the first $2,000,000 dollars of an estate are exempt... The estate is only taxed on what is in excess of 2 million.
All,
Did you know that the campaign to put Initiative 920 on the ballot was financed by just one man - Seattle developer and millionaire Martin Selig? I'm thinking he isn't very interested in "the common good"- especially since the funds from this tax go to education in WA state. Not too fair if you ask me.
Safe bet.
If by "common" good you find "public" to be a suitable synonym, you start to see what it is the conservatives find gruesome. The idea that any money should be set aside for the public apalls them.
For them, privatization is the answer to everything. "let the market work it out..."
Public transportation, public school, public radio, public services, yada yada, its all just a waste of "their" private wealth.
That is the crux of the bisquit...why we can't find common ground. Theirs is a philosophy of the self, and ours is a philosophy of the group. Theirs is a philosophy of politics completely bereft of the idea of social responsibility...which is why they jones so hard for the church. These selfish people look for a religion founded on the concept of christ's altruism and ultimate self-lessness to cover for their absolute lack of the same in the real world. By professing belief in the idea, they don't have to actually act upon the idea...
When I'll be living in the States (soon, thanks to Flea's proper ID - LOL do you see me arriving at the border with that?) I'll straighten things up.
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I saw Clinton's address on this topic the other night on C-Span, and have noticed some news around it. Tally Ho linked to a piece on this, too.
By John Whitesides, Political Correspondent
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Former President Bill Clinton urged Democrats on Wednesday to strive for an inclusive politics of "common good" and fight back against the divisive approach of Republican leaders.
Less than three weeks before November 7 elections to decide control of Congress, Clinton said U.S. Political debate had been degraded by "ideological, right-wing" Republicans who demonized opponents and concentrated power in the hands of a privileged few.
Clinton said he longed for a politics that celebrated differences and disagreements without condemnation, and worked toward equal opportunity, shared responsibility and a sense of community.
"Ideological, divisive, demonizing, distracting politics, they may be very good for an election, particularly when people feel unsettled and insecure, but they don't do much to advance the common good," he said at Georgetown University, on the same stage where 15 years ago he called for a "New Covenant" in politics.
"This sort of politics, striving for the common good, for me stands in stark contrast to both the political and governing philosophy of the leadership in Washington today and for the last six years," he said.
A week or so ago stinkfingers asked
If we are going to find unity, we need to find what it is that unifies us. It is important to know what it is you think you want. It is critical in fact that you get that right, or else we can't begin on the project of restoring unity. What do you, we, really want our country to be, do, stand for?
Then, the other night on PBS, Bill Gates and his pal Warren Buffet were asked by a high school kid about how much tax the wealthy should pay. They felt the rich are not paying near enough, and that the key for the very wealthy shouldn't be consuming wealth, but investing in the common good. Were you aware that Gate's foundation pays for 90% of the polio vaccine used in the entire world?
Now in Washington state, we have an initiative that want to repeal the dreaded "death tax". Here's a tax that almost nobody pays, yet we have some rich SOBs trying to get it removed?
Here's some nice commentary about that from a progressive institute in my state-
Estate tax initiative pits greed against common good
The common good seems to be a topic that is being put before us. Is this that which will unify?
Is this the message that will be the focus of elections this year?