Taxes

Your Tax Dollars at Work

A TAXPAYER-FUNDED EXHIBIT EQUATES REPUBLICAN GOVE
RNORS WITH NAZISM, AND COINCIDENTALLY PROVES PROGRESSIVE DELUSIONS.

"Artist" Sean Michael Stimac has released his piece, "The Faces of Fascism," for display at the Marquette (Michigan) Arts and Cultural Center. In it, Republican governors Walker, Kasich, Scott, and Snyder appear on a Nazi-style propaganda poster with the visage of the Third Reich's eagle, and in its talons is not the swastika, but the Republican Party's token elephant.

First of all, I'D EXPECT A BIT MORE PROFUNDITY OR POSSIBLY A BIT OF ABSTRACTION FROM "ART" THAT HAS BEEN EXHIBITED AS HIGH-BROW STUFF AT A POPULAR CULTURAL CENTER. Instead, this piece has all the value of an unoriginal political cartoon, giving us the same baseless, in-your-face nonsense we've always gotten from the dimwitted left- you know, Bush is a Nazi, ScottWalker's a Nazi, Tea Partiers are Nazis, blah, blah, blah. But WHAT REALLY STANDS OUT HERE IS THE SHEER STUPIDITY AND INEFFECTIVENESS OF THIS PARTICULAR EFFORT. Take a look at the left.

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2011/07/taxpayer-funded_exhibit_slurs_gop_govs_as_nazis.html

Sigh. This is simply pathetic.

CEO of Wynn goes on anti-Obama rant

…AND I'M SAYING IT BLUNTLY, THAT THIS ADMINISTRATION IS THE GREATEST WET BLANKET TO BUSINESS, AND PROGRESS AND JOB CREATION IN MY LIFETIME. And I can prove it and I could spend the next 3 hours giving you examples of all of us in this market place that are frightened to death about all the new regulations, our healthcare costs escalate, regulations coming from left and right. A President that seems, that keeps using that word redistribution. WELL, MY CUSTOMERS AND THE COMPANIES THAT PROVIDE THE VITALITY FOR THE HOSPITALITY AND RESTAURANT INDUSTRY, IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, THEY ARE FRIGHTENED OF THIS ADMINISTRATION. And it makes you slow down and not invest your money. Everybody complains about how much money is on the side in America.

You bet and until we change the tempo and the conversation from Washington, it's not going to change. And THOSE OF US WHO HAVE BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES AND THE CAPITAL TO DO IT ARE GOING TO SIT IN FEAR OF THE PRESIDENT. AND A LOT OF PEOPLE DON'T WANT TO SAY THAT. THEY'LL SAY, GOD, DON'T BE ATTACKING OBAMA. WELL, THIS IS OBAMA'S DEAL AND IT'S OBAMA THAT'S RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS FEAR IN AMERICA….

http://www.businessinsider.com/wynn-ceo-steve-wynn-conference-call-transcript-obama-2011-7#ixzz1SYKdhFIx

And this guy is a democrat who voted for Obama in 2008.
Why The Democratic Party Is Doomed

THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY, AS WE HAVE KNOWN IT FOR THE PAST 70 YEARS, IS NOW IN ITS LAST DAYS.

Yes, the House Republicans may raise the debt ceiling for a mix of spending cuts and revenue raisers. Yes, Barack Obama may win the 2012 presidential contest. Yes, bureaucrats and judges will continue to impose new and costly regulations on the economy.

But it doesn’t matter. THE LONG-TERM TRENDS ARE ALMOST ALL BAD NEWS FOR THE LEFT WING OF THE PARTY.

This week’s fight over raising the federal debt limit exposes a key weakness in the warfare-welfare state that has bestowed power onto the Democratic Party: WITHOUT AN EVER-GROWING SHARE OF THE ECONOMY, IT DIES. EVERY VITAL ELEMENT OF THE DEMOCRATS’ COALITION — UNIONS, GOVERNMENT WORKERS, GOVERNMENT CONTRACTORS, “ENTITLEMENT” CONSUMERS — REQUIRES CONSTANT INCREASES IN PAYMENTS, GRANTS AND CONSULTING CONTRACTS. Without those payments, they don’t sign checks to re-elect Democrats.

Like it or not, OBAMA IS NOT THE NEW FDR, BUT THE NEW GORBACHEV: a man forced to preside over the demise of a political system he desperately wants to save….

http://blogs.forbes.com/richardminiter/2011/07/18/why-the-democratic-party-is-doomed/

This is a fun and hopeful read. And while the Democrats will deny it, those in the know are aware of the precarious state they are in. That’s why they hate the TEA Party so much.

The Hysterically Outdated SEIU Intimidation Manual.

BACKGROUND ON THIS: the SEIU was forced to cough up a copy of its “Contract Campaign Manual” as part of a court case – and it’s an interesting little document. The whole thing reads, as F. Vincent Vernuccio notes in the Washington Times, as A STEP-BY-STEP CHECKLIST ON HOW TO MANIPULATE… JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING, REALLY… IN THE COURSE OF FORCING FAVORABLE NEGOTIATION TERMS. Mostly because that’s what it actually is.
Lots of people are going to concentrate on passages like this:

Union members sometimes must act in the tradition of Dr. Marin Luther King and Mohatma Gandhi and disobey laws which are used to enforce injustice against working people.

or

It may be a violation of blackmail and extortion laws to threaten management officials with release of ‘dirt’ about them if they don’t settle a contract. But there is no law against union members who are angry at their employer deciding to uncover and publicize factual information about individual managers.

…as they should, frankly. But looking at the document itself tells you something interesting ABOUT SEIU: IT APPARENTLY HASN’T HAD AN ORIGINAL THOUGHT IN ITS COLLECTIVE HEAD SINCE, I DON’T KNOW, ABOUT 1985 OR SO*…..

http://moelane.com/2011/07/18/the-hysterically-outdated-seiu-intimidation-manual/

SEIU is a pillar in the Democrat Party. And like the other union pillars it is crumbling from corruption and abuse.


Hauser’s Law is in effect in the USA

Now, if Hauser’s law is as spot-on as it has been in the past and it’s going to be difficult to raise the government’s revenue level much beyond the 20% of GDP mark..."

-- John Hawkins

Welcome to Hauser's Law, a piece of economic theory that could turn out to be quite relevant in the next few decades. LONG STORY SHORT, TAX RATES GO UP AND DOWN, BUT THE AMOUNT OF REVENUE THE GOVERNMENT BRINGS IN HAS TURNED OUT TO BE FAIRLY STATIC.

The reason this is so relevant is that the Democrats, although they loathe to publicly admit it, want America to look much more like Western Europe: They want much bigger government and they want the populace paying a significantly higher tax rate to pay for it. They've been quite successful at getting the bigger government part implemented, but REPUBLICANS HAVE MANAGED TO BLOCK THE HIGHER TAXES. HAUSER'S LAW SUGGESTS THAT EVEN IF DEMOCRATS GOT THEIR HEARTS’ DESIRE AND DRAMATICALLY RAISED TAXES, IT WOULDN'T GENERATE THE REVENUES LIBERALS EXPECT. In other words, big government may be even more financially unfeasible in this country over the long term than it is in places like Greece or Spain -- which would hardly be a shocker given that OUR FOUNDING FATHERS WERE HIGHLY INDIVIDUALISTIC, TAX-HATING, SMALL GOVERNMENT FANATICS WHO CLUNG TO THEIR GUNS AND RELIGION.

http://townhall.com/columnists/johnhawkins/2011/07/19/5_american_economic_statistics_that_will_blow_your_mind/page/full/

This is the fly in the ointment when the Democrats complain that the tax rates used to be much higher. They generally couple this with “and growth was greater.” Of course the revenue collected was not larger, but the people calling for higher tax growth was greater. The world was recovering from a world war, technology was creating new wealth, and new markets were opening in former colonial possessions. The pie was getting bigger!!! Now we have more countries competing for their piece of this pie and the growth we are experiencing is helped by the lower tax rates so that money can go where it will do the most good. But the fly in the ointment I mentioned at the beginning of these comments was that tax revenue wasn’t bigger.

TAXINGCLOSING TAX LOOPHOLES CUTTING TAX EXPENDITURES ON HOLLYWOOD:

Dave Hardy emails:

Check out the Domestic Production Activities Deduction (§199), created by the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004. It classifies moviemaking as a production activity, and gives a tax credit for it (I think 9% or half of salaries paid, whichever is less). (Might PajamasTV qualify, I dunno). Hollywood thus gets a special tax credit of its own, on the theory (which Hollywood types would reject if applied to anyone else) that reducing taxes increases employment.

Plus lots of States give tax credits for the same. I know Arizona does. And often they’re transferable, so that if Disney films in AZ but doesn’t pay taxes here, it can sell the tax credit to someone who does.

http://pajamasmedia.com/instapundit/123928/

Well this is a tax loophole I could support closing.

O’Keefe’s latest sting

James O'Keefe has released A NEW STING VIDEO TARGETING THE MEDICAID PROGRAM in the spirit of his earlier attacks on Planned Parenthood and ACORN.

In this video, TWO MEN APPARENTLY PRESENT THEMSELVES AT THE OFFICES OF THE OHIO DEPARTMENT OF JOB AND FAMILY SERVICES AS RUSSIAN DRUG DEALERS seeking advice on applying for benefits.

In one encounter in the heavily edited video, the men disclose their work as selling "Bob Marley pharmaceuticals" that they hide under their floorboards. THE CASE WORKER APPEARS TO COACH THEM TO CALL THEIR OCCUPATION "BABYSITTING" and informs them that they are not at risk of having their homes searched as part of their Medicaid application.

"WE'RE NOT POLICE," SHE SAYS.

She also says she "just wouldn't mention" the sports car the men say they imported for $800,000 when filling their application.

When the men disclose they need an abortion for their underage sister who performs "sexual favors" for clients when closing deals, the state employee refers them to Planned Parenthood for free abortions that do not require parental consent….

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0711/59305.html#ixzz1SYhehaW2

We have a government that pats down 95 year old cancer victims and 6 year old children while covering up for supposed drug dealers. This is the kind of government the left envisions for America.

Spend It Like Bush

WHAT IF, OVER THE NEXT DECADE, THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT SPENDS AS IRRESPONSIBLY AS PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH DID?

Compare two things: the 2012-2021 federal budget as proposed by President Obama in February (and as scored by the Congressional Budget Office in April), and the actual average spending level from 2001 through 2008 as a fraction of Gross Domestic Product. WE'LL KEEP THE CBO'S PREDICTIONS OF REVENUES AND GDP UNTOUCHED SO THAT ONLY SPENDING DIFFERENCES ARE COMPARED.

The CBO scored Obama's proposed budget as costing $46.2 trillion over 2012-2021, or 23.5% of GDP on average. Since the CBO expects $36.7 trillion in revenues over that time frame, the 10-year CUMULATIVE DEFICIT WOULD BE $9.5 TRILLION. THAT IS THE OBAMA PLAN, AND THE ONLY ONE HE HAS PUT IN WRITING THIS YEAR.

For President Bush's numbers, we can use the White House Office of Management and Budget numbers (Table 1.2). Federal spending under Bush, from 2001 through 2008, varied between 18.2% and 20.7% of GDP, and averaged 19.6% of GDP.

Now we can do a simple ratio calculation. If we were to spend at the Bush rate (19.6% of GDP) instead of the Obama rate (23.5% of GDP), total spending over 2012-21 would be $38.5 trillion instead of $46.2 trillion.

THAT IS A $7.7 TRILLION DIFFERENCE! Here is a table, to make the comparisons easy.
2012-2021 Federal Budget Projections

Obama's Plan
(as scored by CBO) At Bush's Spending Rate (as % of GDP)
Revenues                     $36.702 T                                           $36.702 T
Spending                     $46.172 T                                            $38.509 T
Cumulative Deficit       $9.470 T                                            $1.807 T
Cumulative Deficit        4.8% of GDP                                       0.92% of GDP
Debt held by the public in 2021
                                    $20.806 T                                            $13.143 T*
Debt held by the public in 2021
                                       87.4% of GDP                                   55.2% of GDP*

http://www.americanthinker.com/2011/07/spend_it_like_bush.html

Once again we see there are 7 trillion dollars in excess spending created by this president.


E. coli's genetic code has been hacked

THE GENETIC CODE COMMON TO ALL LIFE IS NOT SET IN STONE. WE CAN CHANGE IT AT ITS MOST FUNDAMENTAL LEVEL FOR OUR OWN PURPOSES. Genetic engineers have invented a new way to quickly, precisely and thoroughly rewrite the genome of living bacteria.

The technique could make drug-producing bacteria immune to viruses, prevent laboratory engineered organisms from genetically contaminating wildlife and enable scientists to construct proteins that do not exist in nature.

FARREN ISAACS OF YALE UNIVERSITY LED THE TEAM THAT THIS WEEK PROVES IT IS POSSIBLE TO MAKE NUMEROUS AND VERY PRECISE CHANGES IN THE GENOME OF LIVING CELLS. "In the process we are recoding organisms that could have completely new functionality."…

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn20694-e-colis-genetic-code-has-been-hacked.html

We are living in a “Brave New World.”

More details on Bin Laden--subsidies for big oil

Details of the Bin Laden Raid

....a resident. The U.S. TROOPS GAVE OSAMA WHAT WAS DESCRIBED AS A BRIEF OPPORTUNITY TO SURRENDER before firing several times, at least once into the head. During the operation, a photo of his face was transmitted to analysts, who confirmed the identification.

According to Pentagon officials, photos of Bin Laden's dead face do exist but those widely distributed on the Internet are fake. At some point, if only to convince die-hard Bin Laden followers, officials are expected to release a corpse photo, as has been done in the past when famous villains such as Che Guevara and Iraqi President Saddam Hussein were killed or captured. Additionally, such special ops are typically videotaped by mini-helmet cams to document a sensitive mission and assist in debriefing and future training.

THREE OTHER ADULT MALES DIED IN THE 40-MINUTE RAID, BELIEVED TO BE BIN LADEN'S ADULT SON AND THE TWO UNIDENTIFIED COURIERS. ONE UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN ALSO DIED AS SHE WAS BEING USED AS A HUMAN SHIELD BY ONE OF THE DEAD MEN....

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2011/05/osama-bin-laden-dead-al-qaeda-islamabad-navy-seals.html

Well done to the US Navy Seals.



Bin Laden Identified by DNA

U.S. officials have confirmed that they have identified Osama bin Laden's body in Afghanistan with DNA tests, and REPORTS SAY THAT THEY GOT THE MATCH FROM A GRISLY SOURCE: HIS DEAD SISTER’S BRAIN. WHEN BIN LADEN’S SISTER DIED FROM BRAIN CANCER A FEW YEARS BACK IN BOSTON, THE FBI IMMEDIATELY PUT A WARRANT CLAIM ON HER BODY SO THAT IT COULD LATER BE USED TO IDENTIFY THE AL QAEDA LEADER were he ever captured.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheat-sheet/item/bin-ladens-body-identified-by-dna/autopsy/?cid=cs:headline3


Enhance Interrogation techniques eventually led to UBL.

Officials say CIA interrogators in secret overseas prisons developed the first strands of information that ultimately led to the killing of Osama bin Laden.

CURRENT AND FORMER U.S. OFFICIALS SAY THAT KHALID SHEIKH MOHAMMED, THE MASTERMIND OF THE SEPT. 11, 2001 TERRORIST ATTACKS, PROVIDED THE NOM DE GUERRE OF ONE OF BIN LADEN'S MOST TRUSTED AIDES. The CIA got similar information from Mohammed's successor, Abu Faraj al-Libi. Both were subjected to harsh interrogation tactics inside CIA prisons in Poland and Romania

http://www.startribune.com/nation/121089124.html


One of the favorite debating points of those opposed to waterboarding is that the information gleaned by these kinds of methods are inherently unreliable. Not so in this case. And consider this. According to sources, the objective of the mission was to kill UBL, not capture him (contrary to the first story). Now this is in line with President Obama’s direction since becoming president. We are not capturing the enemy, we are killing him. Does someone want to tell me again why this is superior to waterboarding captives?



Oil Companies and their “subsidies.”

Everyone wants to end subsidies to oil companies, from President Obama to John Boehner and Paul Ryan. MY QUESTION WAS "WHAT SUBSIDIES?" REMARKABLY ENOUGH, CNN MONEY PROVIDED THE ANSWER.

IT TURNS OUT THAT THEY ARE ALL TAX "BREAKS." I EVEN HESITATE TO CALL THEM "BREAKS" BECAUSE SOME OF THEM AMOUNT TO LITTLE MORE THAN CONGRESS DEFINING ACCOUNTING TERMS SUCH AS "CAPITAL EQUIPMENT." And the total amount of earnings not collected in taxes (which liberals define as a "subsidy") is about $4 billion per year. Here is how that breaks down.
DOMESTIC MANUFACTURING TAX DEDUCTION -- $1.7 B. This is a tax deduction given to every manufacturer in the US. …
PERCENTAGE DEPLETION ALLOWANCE -- $1 B. Any industry can write down a portion of the cost of its capital equipment as part of the cost of doing business…..
FOREIGN TAX CREDIT -- $850 MILLION. Companies get credit for taxes they pay to other countries. ALL COMPANIES GET THIS "SUBSIDY….
INTANGIBLE DRILLING COSTS -- $780 MILLION. The OIL INDUSTRY GETS TO TAKE THE DRILLING CREDIT IN THE FIRST YEAR…."

The above tax "breaks" explain how much tax revenue is not collected from all oil companies. How much is collected?

Exxon recently released its first quarter results for 2011. The number grabbing the headlines was EXXON'S PROFIT: $10.65 BILLION IN A SINGLE QUARTER. THE NUMBER NOT GIVEN QUITE AS MUCH EXPOSURE WAS THE TAXES IT PAID IN THAT SAME QUARTER: $8 BILLION, OR 42% OF INCOME BEFORE TAXES.

And what does Exxon do with all that money it has left after paying $8 B in taxes? IT PUT $7.8 BILLION INTO CAPITAL AND EXPLORATION….
In any other industry, that would be called "research and development." Exxon is plowing 73% of its after-tax profits back into R&D. Who would be better at spending $4 billion of energy companies' earnings in an attempt to provide our energy in the future: the energy companies or Obama's energy czar?...

http://www.americanthinker.com/2011/05/about_those_oil_subsidies.html

This seems to be a canard BHO started in his war on big business. It seems to me there really isn’t anything to it.



Obama and McJobs

MCDONALD'S ANNOUNCED THAT IT RECEIVED A MILLION APPLICATIONS ACROSS THE COUNTRY FOR WHAT AMOUNTED TO 62,000 LOW-SKILL JOBS. What does that say about the state of job creation in this country?

For 62,000 Americans, the heavy weight of unemployment has been lifted by much-maligned McDonald's, the fast-food giant whose employment opportunities were once belittled by the left during the Reagan era as "McJobs."

As for the 938,000 others, the intolerable world of life without work remains. So let's get one thing straight: There is no such thing as undignified work.

http://www.investors.com/NewsAndAnalysis/Article/570704/201104291855/So-Where-Are-The-Jobs-Again-.htm

This is also a big message regarding illegal aliens. Do we today have jobs that Americans are unwilling to do?



Obama's angry comedy routine

SELF-DEPRECATION HAS LONG BEEN A HALLMARK OF PRESIDENTIAL APPEARANCES AT THE ANNUAL WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENTS' ASSOCIATION DINNER. Whether riding high or struggling in the polls, a president's surest way to score points with the press and the Washington political establishment is to make fun of himself. While he's also expected to get in a few digs at his opponents, over the years the THEME OF THE DINNER HAS USUALLY FOCUSED ON A PRESIDENT WHO'S BIG ENOUGH TO MAKE JOKES AT HIS OWN EXPENSE.

In his remarks to the correspondents association dinner Saturday night, Barack Obama came up with a new formula: CUT THE SELF-DEPRECATION TO A MINIMUM AND UNLEASH A SERIES OF ATTACKS ON HIS ADVERSARIES -- and start the performance in a way that seems to mock not just his enemies but the very idea of what it means to be an American.

http://washingtonexaminer.com/politics/2011/04/obamas-angry-comedy-routine-president-jabs-enemies-mocks-symbols-patriotism#ixzz1LCrxtObj


This was a sad demonstration by the President. It appears self-deprecating isn’t his strong suit. Meyers seemed to be just another sycophant trying to ingratiate himself with a thin skinned politician.



HHS demonstrates the awesome power over companies that disagree with them

CEOs are accountable for their actions, but it is simply UNJUST FOR A POWERFUL REGULATOR LIKE MRS. SEBELIUS TO THREATEN A COMPANY WITH RUIN IF IT DOESN'T DISMISS A CEO who has had no formal charges or proof of wrongdoing brought against him. It's another example of how this Administration views private companies as little more than agents of greed that must be made examples of when the political need arrives.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703655404576293232066996982.html?


Does this worry you? It should if you are in the least bit fair-minded.



Are Republicans getting heat like the Democrats did last summer?

REPUBLICANS GET GRILLED AT TOWN HALL MEETINGS OVER BUDGET PLAN,” read the headline on a page National Journal, an inside-the-beltway news source that put up with video clips of Republican lawmakers at town hall meetings during the April recess. Given the evidence provided, however, it’s not clear you could grill a PopTart on the alleged heat.

THE FIRST VIDEO FEATURES CONSERVATIVE CONGRESSMAN ALLAN WEST (R-FL) GETTING HECKLED BY TWO LIBERAL ACTIVISTS. After 11 seconds of their disruption, the crowd starts asking them to be quiet. 19 seconds later, the crowd erupts; not attacking Congressman West, but to silence the hecklers disrupting him. 30 seconds later, West says, “let me tell you this: you’re not going to intimidate me.”

http://townhall.com/columnists/mikeneedham/2011/05/02/whos_bringing_the_heat


This isn’t grassroots or even Astroturf heckling. This is the equivalent of a Chia Pet and we all know how small they are.