Oh Golly, Pollyanna, is it true that the same American businessmen who made their fortunes during the horrific uncertainty of the Cold War and the ever-present threat of Nuclear Winter no longer live and breathe? I hear this "uncertainty myth" and I ask you to name what "certainties" modern businesses enjoy today. They have almost no guaranties of any kind. To make the "uncertainty of health care costs" into the horrible, fearsome incalcuable uncertainty monster holding the entire US business sector at bay borders on the ludicrous. I'm just saying . . . (-:
My employers/companies always paid for health benefits. Since the recent, mostly manufactured debate on the debt limit centers on "the children" it seems that taking away their health care at more and more businesses every day doesn't factor into "robbing their future." Our children should have better lives than we've led because of the addition of our life's labor to society. I had employer/company provided healthcare during my life. Why should the next generation get ripped off? That's how companies can afford $20M+ salary packages for CEOs - by reducing costs to the bone for everyone
*else* in the company.The idea that businesses that have the daring to attempt to commercialize moon travel yet fear some extra costs associated with employees doesn't even sound plausible. It sounds like anti universal health care propaganda. Matching two dates does not a correlation make.
Obviously I am astounded at the idea that businessmen who've created entire new sectors of the economy out of scratch cower at taking on the risk of once again having to at least co-pay worker's health care. Where was this alleged incredible risk aversion when businesses were buying the complex financial securities that sank the economy? It wasn't there then, it isn't there now.
There's no demand for products or the new employees to make more of them because the economy hasn't restarted. That's why the numbers are flat. If it's up to some in Congress, it will never restart.
Yabbut. Compare the cradle-to-grave care some of these countries offer compared to ours and the numbers come out a little differently in what it costs to actually "live a life." That's a metric that's pretty hard to come by in way that's easily comparable and not subject to incredible cherry-picking and criticism.
by far the highest
Does i.e. mean the top 10% pay half their income to the state?
There's a reason why people come to America rather than Russia to make their fortunes. Here in America, they might even be allowed to keep their fortunes AND live. The government everyone loves to hate stands as a rock of stability worldwide and is why Wall St. runs the world. Yet some are determined to drive us to very grim consequences to score political points. It's ironic that Boehner now has to deal with the Tea Party he was happy have swell House ranks last year (I'll bet he was never *really* happy about it and this predictable state of affairs is why).
All this (and much of economic prediction) depends on people acting rationally. Study after study shows they don't. Especially NOT Congress! Even you've reminded us that people aren't well equipped psychologically to evaluate potential risks from various threats. People have been warned so many foods are evil followed by a "we were wrong about so and so" that they shut down input on the subject altogether.
Except for now, when for a lot of people there's NO capital gain when they have to sell a house for less than they paid for it. I'll agree that the wealthy have strange and wonderful ways to evade/avoid taxation and will certainly always find a way to adjust to a tax law change. But maybe we'll help balance the budget by the time they catch up. What happened some other time is only mildly comparable to today's market. Employment numbers are strongly affected by housing prices. You won't move from NJ to Seattle to take a $250K loss. When the housing market slumps, employment numbers soon follow.
Hard to imagine that when the Constitution was written there was no income tax. No capital gains tax. No sales tax.
-- Bobby G.