First off, what Bush did was not a tax cut, no matter what he and the GOP
may call it, it was a tax rebate. That's spending now matter how you cut it.
But even before that, I opposed a true "tax cut."
First off, any tax cut was based on the notion that the good times would
last forever. Obviously, that was a ridiculous assumption. A decline in
revenue was inevitable. We should have paid off the debt (or as much as
possible) while we had the money to do so. As I've said all along, the GOP
plan was just as irresponsible as the Democratic plan. But Lee, you seem
totally unwilling to be critical of the Republicans. Every thing you write
is "Republicans all Good. Democrats all bad." And that really undermines any
argument you make.
And it just doesn't hold water to say, "I support a tax cut because the
Democrats support spending." Like's like saying, "I'm going to spend this
$1,000 before my wife spends it." Well, if you need that $1,000 to pay off
a credit, you better pay off that credit card and make sure your wife
understands she can't spend that money.
My main complaint with the Republicans on any tax cut or tax rebate is that
they CLAIM to be fiscal conservatives, but a true fiscal conservative is
ALWAYS going to pay off debt BEFORE any thing else.
If, after paying off the debt, there is money left over for a tax cut, then
I might support a tax cut, depending on economic conditions at the time.
You keep talking about returning "our money." Well, in a sense it's "our
money." In the same sense it's "our debt." Regardless of whether you
support how the money was originally spent (and most of the principle is
Reagan-era debt, mostly spent on the military), it is "our debt." Which
means, "our money" should be spent on paying off "our debt."
But I also want to take on the notion that it's "our money." Well, no, it's
not. Once we pay our taxes, it's the government's money. It's only "our
money" in the sense that it's OUR GOVERNMENT. We have a moral and ethical
obligation to support our government through the paying of taxes. The
government isn't stealing from us, and if they are, then we're all
co-conspirators. I'm not saying tax policy shouldn't be revised. And I
believe there are areas where government spending can and should be reduced
(significantly -- . But this right-wing notion that any tax money the
government takes is some how wrong, illegal, unfair, or stealing is just
hogwash.
Finally, almost every time you respond to me, Lee, you make some implication
that I'm somehow brainwashed by the media. First off, it's pure right-wing
propaganda to blame everything on the "liberal media," as if such a creature
existed. And second, it's just damn insulting to say to me "you can't think
for yourself."
H.
-----Original Message-----
From: Lee [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Sent: Thursday, August 16, 2001 7:42 AM
To: CF-Community
Subject: Re: Bush's success (was RE: Stem Cells..)
On Wednesday, August 15, 2001 8:36 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
>
>
>It certainly is spending. I don't see how you can logically define it any
>other way.
>
Being a former CPA, the only logical way to define a tax cut is as a
reduction in revenue. It's like a price reduction. To call it spending and
lump it in with real spending is completely disingenuous. Paying down the
debt is also not spending. When you pay down your credit card, do you call
it spending? Spending is generally regarded as something to avoid, whereas
giving your customer a price break or reducing your debt are regarded as
something above that.
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