[Mr 5 0]

Originally posted by rbatson2

Most of us have known each other for many many years and I don't see a little opinion changing the fact that we are still friends.

Of course it won't, Rick. I understand that everyone won't concur with me on every issue and the fact that they don't doesn't make them my enemy or cause me to get hostile, assuming that the person who differs remains civil, as you have. That's the key: disagreement without antagonism.

I must admit, I was pulling your chain a bit the other night, Jim. I've never been in a political discussion with you but I've read a few and I knew what would push your buttons... heeh.

Was it good for you, too?

No way do I believe the Presidency is to be taken lightly. I don't think Bush (jr) was really ready for the office but he had good guidance. Cheney was alot of help, I'm sure, as was his father. His father being in his late 70s doesn't discredit him in the least, in my eyes. My grandpa was handing me great advice right up to his dying day(a week before his 84th birthday).

Frankly, I don't believe anyone is ever truly 'ready' to be president. Bill Clinton was 46, a Governor of a small, poor state and had zero foreign policy experience when he took office in January, 1993. At least President Bush has the good executive sense to surround himself with people who know more than he does on specific areas, such as foreign policy. He isn't afraid to admit he doesn't know everything about everything and I believe that humility is a part of his appeal to average Americans.

If you want to 'discuss' something... let's discuss this tax break thing that Bush wants to push through. I know you spend alot of time researching and thinking about this sort of thing and I personally have a few unresolved issues with it. I enjoy the tax breaks and refunds, don't get me wrong but... how is that supposed to stimulated the economy?

The simple answer is that when government takes more money out of your paycheck you have less to spend and that - multiplied by a few hundred million paychecks - puts less money into the economy, which hurts everyone. When your taxes are cut back, you keep more of what you earn, you have more money to spend and this eventually puts more money into the general economy which helps everyone. When you and I have more cash to spend (because of our taxes being lower) we tend to either save it (giving banks more money to lend for new homes and cars, etc) or we simply buy stuff, making more work for those who make stuff.

It seems to me that there needs to be more jobs to accomplish this feat. The free trade agreement that handed alot of our jobs over to the mexicians, people that don't even pay tax in this country.. I think that should be dealt with. Companies moving thier facilities to other countries to save on labor cost and then bringing the product back here for a greater profit. Seems to me that if there were a greater import tax some of these companies would quit contracting out 'our' work.

Creating jobs isn't that simple, Rick. Free Trade does take away some jobs but the majority of those jobs are low-level, not highly skilled, and with our high minimum wages (compared to other countries) and tons of restrictions on everything from parking spaces for the handicapped to enviromental controls, it's way cheaper for comanies to move outside the U.S. Unions (with high wages) and other factors also drive up prices on American-made goods. We all want that nice new TV or DVD player for $150. but we get it for that price mostly because it cost a lot less to manufacture outside of the U.S. Made-in-U.S.A. is a great concept but so many factors have made manufacturing here expensive and thus, uncompetitive for plant owners who have to compete with companies outside the U.S. that can sell their goods much cheaper. It isn't - as the anti-capitalist liberals always say - all about 'greed'. It's also about survival for American companies.

Bush's latest plan is to give us a tax break but Daschle says, upon further investigation, that a person making $1 million a year will see a return of $24,000 extra while someone making $30-40k will notice a big $76... Who is getting the benifit here?? I know I said I don't listen to political propaganda but... where do you get your info from Jim?

Apparently not where you get yours. The Bush economic plan has not been made public as yet. Daschle and the Democrats are simply playing politics and making wild assumptions in order to make Bushs' plan look 'unfair' before he even reveals it, thus putting Bush on the defensive right off the bat. It's a political trick.

Rick, understand this if nothing else. The top 50% of wage earners pay 96% of the income taxes in this country so they will always (and rightfully) get the biggest benefit when taxes are cut. That's a progressive tax system for you. As you earn more, you pay more in taxes. When taxes are cut accross the board, as they should be, you get a bigger benefit in that you'll now pay less taxes (than a lower-income taxpayer) because you're in a much higher bracket. No mystery. Rich people have been demonized for so long by the Democrats as they try, again, to play the class-envy card and make a across-the-board tax cut seem somehow 'unfair' when wealthy people benefit, as if the wealthy didn't already pay the lions share of all income taxes. Daschle is blowing smoke to hide the fact that cutting taxes is good for the economy, period. He tries to make it appear that if a citizen already paying very high taxes gets a break, it's somehow wrong. Why? The wealthy are the ones who own the companies and help create jobs. When they have more to spend (due to less taxes) it's good for the economy.

In times like these its real easy to get sidetracked by the war at hand. Easy to change the subject, if you know what I mean. I'm lucky enough to have a secure job but I see my brothers falling around me.. Repo houses going up on the market and folks that can't find a job to pay the rent. Is a tax break and extended unemployment the answer? I don't think so.

Is having more money in your paycheck every week going to help? I think so. Unemployment benefits are a band-aid and I have no problem with them being extended but that won't solve anything, granted. It's political. No one is really distracted by the War on Terrorism or Iraq as the Democrats pound Bush on the economy every day and the media help them. Fortunately, the public doesn't blame President Bush for the weak economy, and they are correct. He didn't cause it. The point is that the President doesn't control the economy, whether it's Bush, Clinton or anyone else. He can cut taxes which always helps the economy and do other things to help business - which the Democrats always try to paint as somehow evil. Who do they think supplies all the 'good jobs' they claim to want...not government, but 'business'. Cutting corporate taxes isn't evil, it's a way to help stimulate the economy.

All I can say Rick is that I don't have time to refute every Democrat politician's lies and distortions here but just don't believe everything you see and hear from any politician, especially on the major networks who are 100% liberal in their outlook and show it, every night. Belive me whan I tell you that paying less taxes is always a good thing, whether it's you, me or Bill Gates. Don't fall victim to the liberal's class-envy game. It's bogus.