2016 Presidential Campaign
- Thread starter Kreskin
- Start date
The USA became the world's biggest economic power after WW II - by this time FDR's reforms were all in place and vastly expanded the middle class to previously unmatched levels.
Just saw on the idiot box tonight that Donald is front runner for the Republican nomination! Just think how well he could do if he was sane. 
I saw that as well - however, I believe that's because he attracts the most extremist elements in his party where the less conservatives combined represent a larger segment of the GOP. But all this promises to get even more interesting.
Sadly, the middle class is eroding all across NorAm by virtue of a large tax burden being carried by this demographic
Don't know about Canada, but the middle class tax burden in the U.S. is the lowest it's been in 50 years.
Thanks for the link and info.... Getting back to the commentary about the WW2 era (mostly post war), makes you wonder what global changes affected the conditions back then as compared to now.
Globalization and relative economics is a biggie, but the US had such a strong mfg base back then, too bad it never really kept pace
Globalization and relative economics is a biggie, but the US had such a strong mfg base back then, too bad it never really kept pace
A lot of things. As you say, globalization.
And excessively generous and poorly organized safety net spending. All the stuff the conservatives talk about.
But also way too much military spending. And an unwillingness to pay for our goodies.
But some stuff that's less obvious.
First off, our postwar performance had a lot to do with the fact that we were the only major industrial country that hadn't been heavily bombed. That, plus seven years of pent-up consumer demand, gave us the most amazing golden age since the Spaniards opened the Americas. Much of the "decline" of America after 1973 or so isn't a decline at all; it's just other industrial countries catching up.
And that same advantage became a disadvantage. Because Germany, Japan, Britain, Russia, China, &c. had to rebuild in the late 40s and early 50s, their infrastructure, public and private, is newer than ours, and therefore more efficient.
The liberals also have a point, though they don't know what to do with it. They treat corporate greed as a moral issue. It's an economic issue. Our obsession with shareholder return makes long-term planning difficult to impossible. Our corporations tend to stagger from crisis to crisis. And the merger boom of the 90s caused companies to shed their cash reserves, lest they be bought out. That made them weaker. And we got lazy. The reason Japanese cars became so popular here isn't because of labor costs, or unions, or any of that. It's because, from the Chevy Vega to the K-car, we spent 25 years making crap cars nobody wanted. Because the Big Three thought they would never have competition. And when they got it, they handled it poorly.
The liberals are also right that the shift of wealth to the top 10% is a bad thing, but again, it's bad economically, while they just whine about morality. Economic power comes from money in circulation. The money the middle class spends has a far higher multiplier than the money the upper class invests.
A bunch of things. These are a few. Some of it was natural and inevitable, some of it was on account of bad decisions.
We're still the richest and most powerful, just by a smaller margin. That's probably a good thing, overall.
And excessively generous and poorly organized safety net spending. All the stuff the conservatives talk about.
But also way too much military spending. And an unwillingness to pay for our goodies.
But some stuff that's less obvious.
First off, our postwar performance had a lot to do with the fact that we were the only major industrial country that hadn't been heavily bombed. That, plus seven years of pent-up consumer demand, gave us the most amazing golden age since the Spaniards opened the Americas. Much of the "decline" of America after 1973 or so isn't a decline at all; it's just other industrial countries catching up.
And that same advantage became a disadvantage. Because Germany, Japan, Britain, Russia, China, &c. had to rebuild in the late 40s and early 50s, their infrastructure, public and private, is newer than ours, and therefore more efficient.
The liberals also have a point, though they don't know what to do with it. They treat corporate greed as a moral issue. It's an economic issue. Our obsession with shareholder return makes long-term planning difficult to impossible. Our corporations tend to stagger from crisis to crisis. And the merger boom of the 90s caused companies to shed their cash reserves, lest they be bought out. That made them weaker. And we got lazy. The reason Japanese cars became so popular here isn't because of labor costs, or unions, or any of that. It's because, from the Chevy Vega to the K-car, we spent 25 years making crap cars nobody wanted. Because the Big Three thought they would never have competition. And when they got it, they handled it poorly.
The liberals are also right that the shift of wealth to the top 10% is a bad thing, but again, it's bad economically, while they just whine about morality. Economic power comes from money in circulation. The money the middle class spends has a far higher multiplier than the money the upper class invests.
A bunch of things. These are a few. Some of it was natural and inevitable, some of it was on account of bad decisions.
We're still the richest and most powerful, just by a smaller margin. That's probably a good thing, overall.
As was noted in a subsequent reply, the tax burden for the middle class is at an all time low. Unfortunately, you often get the wrong impression because the radio,tv, and news media are under the control of the far right and they persist in distorting everything. When the truth is disclosed they immediately become silent. Then, after a short while they repeat the same lies that have been refuted innumerable times.
Walker makes it 15 in the GOP primary.
Scott Walker Launches Campaign: "Run On Our Principles" | Video | RealClearPolitics
Scott Walker Launches Campaign: "Run On Our Principles" | Video | RealClearPolitics
I'd need to go back through the info that T-Bones provided, but my immediate question is if that data compared just Federal income tax across the time frames.
The full tax load includes the various Sales Taxes (VAT), muni and State taxes in addition to the increase in the cost and frequency of things like licenses, fees. permits, etc.
Be sure to include those things which reduce taxes such as tax credits, itemized deductions, retirement arrangements, and personal exemptions. Educational, adoption credits, and domestic production activities are new - combined they all lower tax burdens.
Absolutely, in fact, I'd argue that as the tax code has got more complicated, it is the middle class that has assumed the greatest burden in covering the shortfall
Just saw on the idiot box tonight that Donald is front runner for the Republican nomination! Just think how well he could do if he was sane.
So which Republican Candidate comes across as the sane one.........?
Scott Walker Says His Presidential Bid Is 'God's Plan'
My relationship with God drives every major decision in my life.
Each day I pray and then take time to read from the Bible and from a devotional named Jesus Calling. As you can imagine, the months leading up to my announcement that I would run for President of the United States were filled with a lot of prayer and soul searching.
Here’s why: I needed to be certain that running was God’s calling -- not just man’s calling. I am certain: This is God’s plan for me and I am humbled to be a candidate for President of the United States. Now, it is up to the voters to decide who will win the election.
If you support my conservative campaign, please join my team right now with $10, $35, $50, $100, or even $250 today.
Scott Walker Says His Presidential Bid Is 'God's Plan' | Right Wing Watch
As I've said before, in any tax code over ten pages long, the excess overwhelmingly favors the rich.
The U.S. tax code is right about 2000 pages.
The point I am making relates to 'who' is taking-on the brunt of the costs... I'm of the opinion it's the middle income demographic