OT. 70% Tax Rate

[Dean Hoffman]

Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta research shows how a small gain in income can actually cost poor people a bunch.

[gfretwell]

There is no better example than Obamacare. They have a hard income limit for the subsidy and making an extra couple thousand a year could cost you $12,000 if you are a 63 year old woman (my wife's actual experience not a Facebook Meme). She was over the limit and her Obamacare quote was $1000 a month for shitty insurance. ($6500 deductible before they pay a dime, then you still have co pays).

[Dean Hoffman]

Star Parker has an article about poverty in the U.S. A good share of it talks about the loss of religion. What got my attention was this. "In 1960, about 25% of the federal budget was payments to individuals. Today, it is 70%." <

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President Nixon said "If we take the route of the permanent handout, the American character will itself be impoverished. "

[Neill Massello]

This problem, of benefit phase-outs creating high effective marginal tax rates for recipients, has been talked about for at least 50 years. It is an unwanted feature of means-tested benefits programs that (AFAIK) no one has figured out how to avoid. Programs that are not means-tested, such as Universal Basic Income (UBI), may avoid that specific problem, but also create disincentives for people to provide for their own basic needs.

[gfretwell]

More than half of that is SS, Medicare and the various federal pensions (AKA entitlements)

[invalid unparseable]

That?s bullshit with the today rate and you cant include SS or Medicare because those are paid for by those who eventually receive it.

More utterly mindless silly stuff.