09 October 2010

Laffer Curve is a joke

Conventional conservative doctrine holds that when taxes are cut, tax revenue goes up. It is complete bullshit, - cash grab by the wealthiest greedy Americans. Like other conservative issues, history and facts are being re-written. The problem with those clowns at The Heritage Foundation, and other conservative groups who pass off this propaganda is one big assumption that can't be true - they all assume any cash kept on a tax cut is re-invested in the U.S. and is then used to create more jobs. They don't take into account the propensity of billionaires to travel and spend their money overseas, not only for frivolities for themselves and their families, but also in outsourcing jobs in their growing businesses.

We tried this tax cut strategy in the Reagan Presidency, who left the country with a record deficit. Note Ronny also had two stimulus plans - eat your hearts out Heritage. But that one is for another day...

To an ordinarily person this principle of cut the rate and get more, doesn't pass the smell test. After-all if the country was a household, and you reduce your income (tax revenue) then, if you are living paycheck to paycheck, you will start overdrawing, or dipping into your credit cards. You should keep to your original instinct on this one, and call this one c r a p.

But those daft conservatives will have you believe that in the U. S magically, when taxes are cut, those brilliant billionaires will reinvest it all back in the U. S. And when they do re-invest it, those funds will create jobs.

Nice try. Herewhy this theory is BS, even though we've already seen it bust.

Not all of those tax dollars are invested in the U. S. The poor among you may have never traveled or studied overseas, but it might not surprise you that many Americans are living, and studying overseas, all paid for by their parents. And these schools aren't cheap! Wonder how many more would be over there if we cut taxes again. Even if they're invested it probably will be overseas where labor costs are lower. I had a boss who once said I could hire all the help I needed - in the Philippines! And I did, to keep from working 16 hour days.

So where does the conservative Laffer plan fail here? Tax cut dollars are not invested in the U. S. They are invested overseas, or consumed overseas where they support the economies of other countries. Indeed - the CBO estimated that at best 28% of the tax cut cash would be reinvested in 10 years.

And another thing - where does does the supposed tax cut benefit stop, as they say on Saturday Night Live - REALLY? For this to be true, that as you cut taxes revenue increases, at another magical point - 0% taxes - we should have the ultimate in investment - and an infinite tax revenue? Kind of like a perpetual motion machine. Hogwash again.

And investment in the U. S. is just where Food Stamps and Unemployment Insurance excels. Because the unemployed and those on food stamps are not likely to travel, that money is invested locally, employing people in grocery stores, transportation, farms and factories. All these jobs created or kept by these programs pay taxes. Poor people actually need the cash to so they actually spend it, and they don't travel because they don't have the money, so they spend it locally. Studies say over 80% of the Food Stamp and Unemployment Insurance money is-reinvested.

Next time someone tells you our economy will be better off if we cut taxes for the very rich, LAUGH and tell them you know better, and the only ones who are better off, are the people that get the tax cut, in this case those with gross incomes or net profits of over $250,000 per year - less than 2% of the U. S. population.
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