Still sick. So I have a lot of time to wander through the Internet, and, of course, my interests these days are sharply focused on the Occupy Wall Street movement. As I said, I’m a 99 Percenter, and I stand with the protesters. Or pray for them and cheer them on from my bed. Whatever.
From Michael Moore’s website — yep, he’s obviously a liberal, and he has an agenda, but I would welcome anyone who can factually refute the information below:
“Contrary to Republican claims, the United States is one of the lowest-tax countries in the world– U.S. corporations and wealthy citizens pay far less in taxes than other developed nations. Since 1950, capital gains taxes have dropped 10 percent, tax rates for million-dollar households have decreased 10 percent since the mid-nineties, and the estate tax has virtually disappeared for those with the largest fortunes since the onset of the Bush presidency. Four simple solutions would close that $4 trillion budget gap in the next decade, without even touching Social Security or Medicare.
By passing laws like Sen. Carl Levin’s Stop Tax Haven Abuse Act, we could generate over $100 billion in new revenue from closing loopholes that allow corporations to shift profits to overseas bank accounts. Through modest taxation of speculative Wall Street trading, we could bring in another $150 billion per year. With higher income tax brackets for households earning over $1 million annually, as Rep. Jan Schakowsky has proposed, we would gain another $100 billion. And progressively taxing estates worth $5 million or more would mean an extra $45 billion in tax revenue…”
The writer refers to the GOP lawmakers as “terrorists,” and perhaps he’s not far off, if the definition of “holding a country — and its economy — hostage” through coercion and corruption applies. Certainly the GOP and those Democrats who refuse to stand up and act like Democrats have instilled tremendous fear in the body politic, and while they haven’t done it with guns, they’ve done it with legislation. More people die from bad social policy than do from gunfire, and I unabashedly believe that communities beset with violence such as gunfire are victimized by past and current social inequalities that give rise to despair, anger, restlessness and poor impulse control. Terrorists or despots, those who perpetuate the gap between the one percent who benefit from their cushy legislative largesse and the 99 who get shafted have done tremendous damage — damage that the God of the GOP will demand an accounting for.
Pray that hearts change from the top before that great and terrifying Day . . .