Post by: Monkeyleg on September 21, 2008, 08:06:11 PM
Months ago we had a demonstration by Mexicans in the US who didn't show up for work to illustrate their value to our economy. There have been several threats in cities of a "blue flu" if police unions don't get what they want at the bargaining table.
What would it be like if every person who made over $250,000 didn't come to work for a day or even a week? If the person owned a business, it would close for a day or a week. If the person was a CEO, he'd just stay home.
I wonder what the effect would be on our economy?
I realize that getting about 1.5 million people to act in concert is unlikely, but the idea is entertaining.
Post by: Manedwolf on September 21, 2008, 08:18:20 PM
You just can't do something like that and survive. Of course, you can't pay more taxes and survive, either.
Post by: De Selby on September 21, 2008, 08:41:29 PM
If, God forbid, Obama is elected and manages to push through his tax increase on those making over $250,000, I have an idea. Not an original idea, but an idea nonetheless.
Months ago we had a demonstration by Mexicans in the US who didn't show up for work to illustrate their value to our economy. There have been several threats in cities of a "blue flu" if police unions don't get what they want at the bargaining table.
What would it be like if every person who made over $250,000 didn't come to work for a day or even a week? If the person owned a business, it would close for a day or a week. If the person was a CEO, he'd just stay home.
I wonder what the effect would be on our economy?
I realize that getting about 1.5 million people to act in concert is unlikely, but the idea is entertaining.
Months ago we had a demonstration by Mexicans in the US who didn't show up for work to illustrate their value to our economy. There have been several threats in cities of a "blue flu" if police unions don't get what they want at the bargaining table.
What would it be like if every person who made over $250,000 didn't come to work for a day or even a week? If the person owned a business, it would close for a day or a week. If the person was a CEO, he'd just stay home.
I wonder what the effect would be on our economy?
I realize that getting about 1.5 million people to act in concert is unlikely, but the idea is entertaining.
If the Dilbert picture of management is correct, the entire economy would experience unprecedented gains and management would come back on day 2, with a billion charts to explain how this or that management technique was responsible for the boone.
Post by: mtnbkr on September 22, 2008, 01:25:23 AM
It's the folks at my level (or a level up or down) who do the day to day or month to month work that would be missed. If I went away for a week, some stuff would go undone, but the folks below me would do the majority of the work. If my direct manager went away for a week, I wouldn't notice. A month and I might have to get with her manager for purchasing authority and the like, but I'd still be ok. Someone in my chain of command at the 250k level? I wouldn't miss them at all. At best, I'd need their signoff on something once or twice a year (major capital purchases, new contracts, etc).
Chris
Post by: Manedwolf on September 22, 2008, 03:50:14 AM
A day or a week wouldn't have any effect at all. Most folks at that level of pay aren't working on the day to day tactical stuff, but long term strategic tasks (ignoring for now the engineering and creative types who can pull that money down while working day to day tasks).
It's the folks at my level (or a level up or down) who do the day to day or month to month work that would be missed. If I went away for a week, some stuff would go undone, but the folks below me would do the majority of the work. If my direct manager went away for a week, I wouldn't notice. A month and I might have to get with her manager for purchasing authority and the like, but I'd still be ok. Someone in my chain of command at the 250k level? I wouldn't miss them at all. At best, I'd need their signoff on something once or twice a year (major capital purchases, new contracts, etc).
Chris
It's the folks at my level (or a level up or down) who do the day to day or month to month work that would be missed. If I went away for a week, some stuff would go undone, but the folks below me would do the majority of the work. If my direct manager went away for a week, I wouldn't notice. A month and I might have to get with her manager for purchasing authority and the like, but I'd still be ok. Someone in my chain of command at the 250k level? I wouldn't miss them at all. At best, I'd need their signoff on something once or twice a year (major capital purchases, new contracts, etc).
Chris
That's all true. I meant if the actual businesses closed, as said.
Then there's the small business owners who make that because they never take a day off, and are directing everything 24/7. They're going to be badly hurt, too.
Post by: grampster on September 22, 2008, 04:10:02 AM
What is more incredible is the huge number of people who actually are comforted by his comments.
If Obama, or any politician for that matter, were not such frauds, he and they would be running on the notion of changing the tax code in such a fashion that everyone would pay some federal taxes, from the poorest to the richest. 10% to run the .fedgov. If that won't support the .fedgov then trim it till it does.
What I have never understood is when confronted with the fact that business, industry and government are having trouble, businesses and industry fold up and go away, but government not only is required to maintain the status quo, it also even grows.
How about rather than having everyone who produces something and makes over 250K protest, we ought to shut the federal government down for a month every six months? No pay, no nothing for a month, twice a year. Would improve everyone's planning skills. Can't or won't plan? Too bad, so sad. Got a soft heart? Then better yet, just trim every .fedgov budget by 10% a year till the national debt is gone.
Post by: Monkeyleg on September 22, 2008, 04:50:12 AM
Grampster, Obama is promising all sorts of candy to 95% of the population, and promises to have that 5% pay for it. There's absolutely no way that the 5% can pay for everything Obama has promised.
About 12.5% of the population is below poverty level, so they'll pay no taxes at all. My guess is that the remaining 82.5% or so--the middle class--will wind up paying more taxes in the end. In other words, they'll be paying for the "free" stuff Obama promised them.
Why can't people see through this transparent charlatan?
Post by: Manedwolf on September 22, 2008, 04:52:36 AM
Oh, well. A person can dream, can't he?
Grampster, Obama is promising all sorts of candy to 95% of the population, and promises to have that 5% pay for it. There's absolutely no way that the 5% can pay for everything Obama has promised.
About 12.5% of the population is below poverty level, so they'll pay no taxes at all. My guess is that the remaining 82.5% or so--the middle class--will wind up paying more taxes in the end. In other words, they'll be paying for the "free" stuff Obama promised them.
Why can't people see through this transparent charlatan?
Grampster, Obama is promising all sorts of candy to 95% of the population, and promises to have that 5% pay for it. There's absolutely no way that the 5% can pay for everything Obama has promised.
About 12.5% of the population is below poverty level, so they'll pay no taxes at all. My guess is that the remaining 82.5% or so--the middle class--will wind up paying more taxes in the end. In other words, they'll be paying for the "free" stuff Obama promised them.
Why can't people see through this transparent charlatan?
Because he's promising free stuff.
Post by: taurusowner on September 22, 2008, 05:00:42 AM
Quote
Then there's the small business owners who make that because they never take a day off, and are directing everything 24/7. They're going to be badly hurt, too.
They would suffer more than you can imagine. Think of every small business that gets food shipments from big suppliers. Fast food chains that close because they can't get ingredients. Auto parts stores that can't get inventory. Every small business out there that sells products would run out of inventory and have nothing to sell within days.
When you fark with the people who provide all of the jobs in the country, you're farking with said jobs. That's a dangerous move. Obama doesn't seem to get that.
Post by: Boomhauer on September 22, 2008, 05:06:02 AM
Quote
Obama doesn't seem to get that.
Oh, he and his ilk get it all right. And that's what they want...
It's just a nice side benefit that promising stuff like this will get him plenty of votes from idiots.
Post by: GigaBuist on September 22, 2008, 09:26:21 AM
Quote
When you fark with the people who provide all of the jobs in the country, you're farking with said jobs. That's a dangerous move. Obama doesn't seem to get that.
Take a look at the maximum income tax rates in the US over the 20th century. They were upwards of 70-80% in the 50's, 60's and into the 70's. Possibly even as early as the late 40's. I forget offhand.
What I'm getting at is that we've survived under it before... in fact I'd say we flourished.
Post by: K Frame on September 22, 2008, 09:29:31 AM
The only reason we fluorished in the post war years is because the United States had the worlds ONLY major industrial base and economy that wasn't broken by 6 years of a world war.
Post by: Scout26 on September 22, 2008, 12:05:19 PM
Post by: Manedwolf on September 22, 2008, 12:07:06 PM
Quote
When you fark with the people who provide all of the jobs in the country, you're farking with said jobs. That's a dangerous move. Obama doesn't seem to get that.
Take a look at the maximum income tax rates in the US over the 20th century. They were upwards of 70-80% in the 50's, 60's and into the 70's. Possibly even as early as the late 40's. I forget offhand.
What I'm getting at is that we've survived under it before... in fact I'd say we flourished.
And if you were an entrepreneur, would you stick around for that? Or take off to Dubai and manufacture elsewhere?
Post by: taurusowner on September 22, 2008, 12:38:32 PM
What happens when your boss or business owner closes the place you work and leaves the country? You're screwed. Now what happens when everyone's bosses and business owners close up shop and leave?
Post by: Jamisjockey on September 22, 2008, 12:41:25 PM
Post by: Brad Johnson on September 22, 2008, 01:15:27 PM
What is more incredible is the huge number of people who
There. Fixed it for you.
Brad
Post by: lupinus on September 22, 2008, 03:04:16 PM
What is more incredible is the huge number of people who actually are comforted by his comments.
Post by: GigaBuist on September 22, 2008, 03:51:41 PM
And if you were an entrepreneur, would you stick around for that? Or take off to Dubai and manufacture elsewhere?
Apparently they stuck around. I'm not aware of any mass exodus from 1950-1970ish.
This puzzles me.
Post by: grampster on September 22, 2008, 04:37:16 PM
It was because of what Mike said. America was the only industrialized nation in the world after WWII. The rest of the world needed to be rebuilt. Most of the small businesses supplied that industrial giant and other small businesses supplied the small businesses that supplied the industrial giant and so on and so and scooby dooby doooo.............
Post by: GigaBuist on September 22, 2008, 05:40:02 PM
Yeah, that makes perfect sense to me.
Post by: Gowen on September 22, 2008, 05:40:39 PM
What I'm getting at is that we've survived under it before... in fact I'd say we flourished.
The difference was there was every write off you could imagine. Interest paid on credit cards, car loans, etc. this brought the tax rate down to something manageable. When Regan cut the taxes, the dems cut out the write offs.
Post by: MechAg94 on September 22, 2008, 05:42:12 PM
Post by: MicroBalrog on September 23, 2008, 12:22:46 AM
Gig,
It was because of what Mike said. America was the only industrialized nation in the world after WWII. The rest of the world needed to be rebuilt.
It was because of what Mike said. America was the only industrialized nation in the world after WWII. The rest of the world needed to be rebuilt.
And other nations had higher taxes.
That today practically no nation has an income tax margin over 50% is a result of America's 'Reagan revolution.'
Post by: RoadKingLarry on September 23, 2008, 12:13:24 PM
Who is John Galt ??
I finally got around to reading that a couple of weeks ago. The parallels to today are amazing and a little scary.
Post by: MicroBalrog on September 24, 2008, 12:08:54 AM
Quote
About 12.5% of the population is below poverty level, so they'll pay no taxes at all. M
That's a canard, unfortunately. I'd love it to be true, but unfortunately, pretty much everybody pays a variety of indirect taxes at least.
Post by: seeker_two on September 24, 2008, 01:18:33 AM
Now that is avatar-level quality....
