American Wealth Inequality

[RandomGuy]

Well I hate to tell you but free enterprise did do exactly what you described
in the first paragraph above. What made things expensive? Government,
what made things like water scarce, government. What made energy
expensive, government. Who is still trying to cause scarcity and
rationing, government. You name a problem we have today and I can
guarantee that government has caused it through their actions. So
don't blame business, they work within the framework.

We have always had rationing in our economy. We ration by ability and willingness to pay.

Government has not made water scarce, the fact that there is a rather fixed amount of it, but an increasing demand for it did.

How exactly has government made energy expensive?

[DarrinS]

All I asked was for some source for your stats, so I could figure out for myself what to think about it.

People like you simply ape disinenguous lies all the time through sheer ignorance, so I am forced to do this.

You read some thing somewhere that says "look they thought medicare would only cost X in 1990, but it was really 11 times that" in order to make the argument "all en lements spiral really wildly out of control, so they must be stopped".

"time value of money" is simply a way of accounting for inflation. It isn't all that fancy.

Not allowing for inflation is one of the oldest tricks in the book for lying with statistics, especially when it comes to politics.

That you don't know to look for it says to me that you get lied to all the time and don't know it.

Do you actually have source link for your previous statment?

http://blog.heritage.org/2009/08/04/...-track-record/

[ChumpDumper]

Think about what you posted. Has there ever been a time when 47 percent
are on the wagon being pulled by other 53 percent. Stands to reason,
those that are producing are going to reap more of the wealth than those
standing around waiting for handouts.

That 47 percent number is highly misleading. It's not like that 47 percent are paying no federal taxes at all.

[DarrinS]

Anyone have any ideas on how to increase the wealth of those at the bottom, other than stealing money from the productive sector and giving it to them?

[ChumpDumper]

Anyone have any ideas on how to increase the wealth of those at the bottom, other than stealing money from the productive sector and giving it to them?

Are you saying all those on the bottom are not productive? From the numbers bandied about, it seems that those on the top have found a way to steal money from an increasingly more productive group on the bottom.

[admiralsnackbar]

Anyone have any ideas on how to increase the wealth of those at the bottom, other than stealing money from the productive sector and giving it to them?

Ignoring your characterization of social programs as giveaways for a moment... do you have a better idea?

[DarrinS]

Ignoring your characterization of social programs as giveaways for a moment... do you have a better idea?

I asked the question.

[admiralsnackbar]

I asked the question.

And I ignored it because it was vapid.

[Winehole23]

I asked the question.

Priority.

How chicken . That's no excuse for being non-responsive. None at all. Unless you have already ruled out answering a question and asking your own in the same post. Nothing prevents that at all.

This whole answer *no, you answer mine first* schtick is puzzling to me, D. I wonder whether the authority you seem to rely on for this demand can really be traced to the courtroom or the debate hall. To me it just seems rude, and and a little bit obtuse.

[Winehole23]

That said, I ignored it because it was vapid smacks this slightly tipsy reader as being Darrinesque, par excellence, almost.

Pure condescending sidestep. Not to be much distinguished in form from my target in the above post, except that you at least attempted the next topic.

DarrinS couldn't even hang long enough to follow up on his own posts.

[MannyIsGod]

Condescending and self-pitying in the same breath? Seems to fit.

He did vote for Obama after all.

[LnGrrrR]

Back in 1967, didn't the the House Ways and Means Committee estimate Medicare would cost $10 billion annually by 1990, when, IN REALITY, it wound up costing $110 billion?

Maybe they needed better equations?

And the movie 2001 A Space Odyssey was way off too.

[MannyIsGod]

Are you saying all those on the bottom are not productive? From the numbers bandied about, it seems that those on the top have found a way to steal money from an increasingly more productive group on the bottom.

[spursncowboys]

The Jetsons were way off too. However this seems to be an MO of the Nati Govt.

[MannyIsGod]

That said, I ignored it because it was vapid smacks this slightly tipsy reader as being Darrinesque, par excellence, almost.

Pure condescending sidestep. Not to be much distinguished in form from my target in the above post, except that you at least attempted the next topic.

DarrinS couldn't even hang long enough to follow up on his own posts.

To be fair, if I ask you how you plan on dealing with the sky being black during the day you're probably not going to to try to answer my question because the sky isn't black during the day now is it?

When someone uses the word stealing to frame their question when nothing is being stolen then it is very difficult to answer their question.

[MannyIsGod]

Assuming that unreferenced item of information is correct (I refuse to call it a fact), then what does it prove? That projections used by congress can be incorrect? Was this even up for debate or relevant to the question posed by RG about something affecting GDP?

[Winehole23]

Was this even up for debate or relevant to the question posed by RG about something affecting GDP?

As usual, things never really got that far.

[LnGrrrR]

Anyone have any ideas on how to increase the wealth of those at the bottom, other than stealing money from the productive sector and giving it to them?

What makes the theft of the rich so much more heinous that the "theft" of anyone who pays taxes? I don't have a child in the public education system for instance. Would you call taxation of my income to pay for services I don't use "theft"?

Also, way to use a term like "theft"... Even though progressive taxes are obviously legal. Tell me, have you beaten your wife lately?

[LnGrrrR]

Remember Manny, if one fact of a theory can be proven wrong, that immediately invalidates the whole theory.

See most global warming debates for further examples...

[spursncowboys]

What makes the theft of the rich so much more heinous that the "theft" of anyone who pays taxes? I don't have a child in the public education system for instance. Would you call taxation of my income to pay for services I don't use "theft"?

Also, way to use a term like "theft"... Even though progressive taxes are obviously legal. Tell me, have you beaten your wife lately?

I think it could be considered stealing when it is taken by one small section and made to directly benefit others. Taxes should go towards something for everyone.

[MannyIsGod]

I guess I am really amused, but trying to downlplay the GDP equation used here is like mocking someone for going to a dictionary for a definition.

"Well, I'm not going to trust your usage of the [b]hilarity[b] because you just pulled it off of MarianWebster.com"

[MannyIsGod]

I think it could be considered stealing when it is taken by one small section and made to directly benefit others. Taxes should go towards something for everyone.

I'm sorry but that is not stealing. Perhaps I can interest you in visiting this new website I just mentioned:

http://www.merriam-webster.com/

[Winehole23]

To be fair, if I ask you how you plan on dealing with the sky being black during the day you're probably not going to to try to answer my question because the sky isn't black during the day now is it?

When someone uses the word stealing to frame their question when nothing is being stolen then it is very difficult to answer their question.

Of course.

I'm not sure what you mean by word stealing, but the first part is clear enough. Better to ignore plain absurdities than dwell too long upon them.

[MannyIsGod]

Of course.

I'm not sure what you mean by word stealing, but the first part is clear enough. Better to ignore plain absurdities than dwell too long upon them.

Look at Darrin's question. He used to the word stealing where there is no theft taking place.

[spursncowboys]

MIG: maybe you should check that same website out.