Trader2020----The top earners SHOULD pay the most taxes, they make the most....DUH, We all know the rich are pampered and get the breaks, stands to reason. :eek: Torontotrader2....Saw this in a political cartoon website about the "BLUE" states and the "RED" states after the last election was stolen by the republicans when they pulled in Ohio what was previously pulled in Florida. The Blue states have become a part of Canada where free thinking and choices are welcomed and honored. The Red states have stayed put, they like being told what, who, when to believe in and honor. Thus the Red states are now called Jesusland. There comes a time in most peoples lifes where they should come to realize what side they are on. Is there any doubt why the far right all think alike? They are lackies and follow the same beliefs, be it a outdated religious thinking, believe there really was "WMDs", believe in "FOX" news. Have a nice day.
"Name a country that the US brought democracy to? How about preserving it in most of Europe in WW2 for starters." Keep in mind that the USA did not even want to get involved with WW2, they were quite happy to just keep selling arms to Europe. The USA was the only country to come out of the war richer than when it went in as all help was paid for by any country it helped which helped propel the USA to the forefront of global powers as other world nations ended up near bankrupt. The USA only got involved when war was declared on them, not for any sense of moral obligation or sense of humanity. Russia is primarily responsible for defeating Germany due to bogging down German forces on the Eastern Front. Due to the larger volume of western television and movies on the War, many in the west are under the mistaken impression that the western allies did as much, if not most, of the fighting, and that the Russians were at best, fighting "half" of the war. This is untrue. the saying goes, "for every one [German] division in the west, there were ten in the east." Osama himself has been quoted as saying this current world war on terror is as much an economic war as anything else. How much money does the current NYC threat cost? How much are the USA spending per month just now not just in Iraq but in general due to upped security costs? The USA will not be able to keep funding such huge military operations forever, as it stands Bush has raised the debt ceiling three times since 2001 to stop from running out of money...all the terrorists need to do is keep breeding. Iraq is a lost cause as it stands...terrorists are willing to wait decades, does the USA have such will?
The USA did not "BRING" democracy to Europe. WWII was to stop the spread of a dictator. that is what we are doing today as we look further into the doings of the Bush administration. What we see is a dictator wannabe, as we see the likes of Tom Delay, Rove, Bennett and others we see the failings of the right being able to SHARE the burden of a Demorcacy, they want to keep it all for themselves. Why is it that the right is so selfish? PS, IRAG is a lost cause, we were not welcomed with rose pedals in the streets. Would we have gone in another persons country if the country had no oil and a oil person was not pulling Bushe's chain?
Where does your lefty horsesh*t come from in country as blessed as Canada? The Soviets 30 & 20 years ago were flooding dummy Commy or lefty loser regimes in Africa and elsewhere with arms which is what got the whole insurgency/genocide/terrorist enchilada going and reaching the fu*ked up proportions of recent times? So take a deep breath and get your basics right.
And the US were providing the others...in particular a famous rogue country known under the name of Afghanistan.... and another known as part of a certain 'axis of evil', better known as Iran...
I would love paying taxes in the US if I got something back actually. As the tax code stands it is not more than a mafia style extortion from the people while cutting slack to corporations and giving jackshit in return!
Quote from science_trader: Quote from Hamlet: Name a country that the US brought democracy to? How about preserving it in most of Europe in WW2 for starters. You clearly forget those countries were ALREADY democracies before the war ! Other examples ? Common, you will find one if you look for... See dictionary for meaning of "preserve". Is not preserving democracies (not to mention sovereignties) even MORE important than creating one? Maybe the US got involved late and maybe they are not soley responsible for victory but who would argue that their involvement was THE turning point of the war? Bombing Iraq towns and their water/power plants? That was during the first 2 weeks of the war. Done, may I remind you, for nothing. There was no WMD in Irak, it is now OBVIOUS to everyone, even to the blinds. US had nothing to do there. Getting rid of Saddam Hussein has come long after as an objective of the war. You are so much influenced by your politicians and their discourse that you seem to have become completely blind. I am not influenced by anyone or any politics, but solely by my own thinking, reason and logic and I conclude based on all of the BIG PICTURE facts that the US action in Iraq was the right choice. Is Afghanistan perfect? No. It's a hundred times better than it was. It is no longer a terrorist haven where al queda roams and rules freely. The terrorist training camps are gone. Where are you taking this 'hundred times better' ??? Would the US be a better country if it was abandoning all its US army bases throughout the world ??? No, and the world would cease to exist as you know it. I say it is a hundred times better because of the state of Afghanistan then vs. now and in the future. It was once ruled by Al Queda. Women were not allowed to get an education. Men went there from around the globe, to the home base of Bin Laden, to be trained as terrorists and killers of Western civilians. I could go on and on. The country did a 180 degree turn, do your own homework... you won't hear much about it on the evening news though... You seem jealous of Haliburton and other rich companies. Why? It seems they have products or services that people want or need, and so they sell them. That is capitalism. If you envy their money and success then why don't you develop products or services that people want or need too. There are start-up success stories every day. Instead of detesting someone else's success, improve your own. Are you so blind not to see the connections between these industries and the US government ? If these companies are so successful in their respective businesses, why then do they need to spend so much time and efforts for lobbying in Washington ? Lobbying is a way of life in US govt, love it or hate it. It is done by the large corporations as well as special interest groups representing people from all walks of life. The poor pay for the war? That is incorrect. The top earners pay the majority of the tax revenue. The poors pay for the war because all the tax revenues that should serve as a 'social lift' to fight inequalities are used in a stupid war whose result is evident everyday. Social lift most effectively come from within oneself rather than a govt handout. The govt is much more effective at large scale efforts, like fighting terrorists and rogue govts who mean to do us harm and end our way of life.
AGI Percentiles --------Percentage of Federal Ranked----------------Personal Income Tax Paid Top 1%--------------------34.27% Top 5%--------------------54.36% Top 10%-------------------65.84% Top 25%-------------------83.88% Top 50%-------------------96.54% Bottom 50%-----------------3.54% Note: AGI is Adjusted Gross Income Source: Internal Revenue Service Tax Year 2003