Funding solution for many things...

[Bzzzz]

How about an appropriate tax on ALL goods and services used by foreign visitors (vacationers, business people, etc.) If they buy a souvenir, buy a meal, rent a car, stay in a hotel,etc, they get taxed? They would pay for our retirement, health care, community projects, etc.

[no name no slogan]

1. We should just sell meth instead

it's profitable, easy to make, and practically sells itself. And it's a hell of a lot better than building another goddamn casino.

[Lars39]

2. How about we not budget half our money to the military complex?

How about corporations pay their fair share?

[Mairead]

5. Oh, well, you know, that's such a simplistic idea--it would never work

Mainly because of the number of now-wealthy people who'd be much less wealthy if we ever chose to do that.

[Lars39]

8. You'd think at some point they'd twig to the effects on the rest of us.

:shrug:

[Bluerthanblue]

6. sounds

good to me on both counts- and while we're working on the military budget, maybe we could scrap the star-wars type crap, and actually pay the enlisted men and women, and the National Guard reserves a decent wage, and adequate health care???

Maybe folks like Rumsfeld, could take a cut in pay-?

[Toucano]

3. How do you know who's a foreign visitor?

Does the clerk at McDonald's need to see my U.S. birth certificate so I'm not charged your tax?

[Bzzzz]

7. Would the inconvenience...

of proving your citizenship in order to provide health care, public works, and retirement to the people be too much to ask?
Geez, if people are too lazy to even reach into their wallet for I.D. it is worse than I thought.

[Toucano]

16. That doesn't answer the question.

The ID I carry in my wallet doesn't say I'm a U.S. citizen.

[Bzzzz]

21. Walking Eagle...

is wanting everyone to have an I.D. to be able to vote. Plain and simple...

[Toucano]

24. Nice evasion.

Does the ID you carry say you're a citizen?

I have documents I that say I'm a citizen, but I don't carry them in my wallet. Very few people do. If your "great idea" depends on the passage of bad legislation, what do you suppose that says about your idea?

Your proposal is junk.

You think the richest country in the world should finance vital services for its citizens on the backs of the rest of the world? All this so the idiotic, fetus-loving-baby-killers and superstitious, homophobic dupes can return the same greedy thieves to Washington without suffering the consequences of their choices?

Screw that. If the people want healthcare, let them vote for candidates who will deliver healthcare reform.

There's plenty of money right here in the USA to pay for the good things you seek. The last thing we need Democrats to do is call for new, unfair, complicated, unenforceable, uncollectable taxes. Would you like to see a larger Republican majority in congress?

Take a look at this from the NY Times a few weeks ago:

Not Since the Twenties Roared



The top 0.01% is leaving the top 0.10% in the dust due to rigging of the tax structure in their favor. We're not even talking about whole numbers, but fractions of percents.

The number of "super-rich" who paid ZERO dollars in federal income tax has doubled since 2000. That's ZERO dollars contributed to the senseless war for profit, ZERO dollars contributed to feed the poor, ZERO dollars contributed to education, and ZERO dollars contributed to national security.

How about we require the people whose wealth has been derived from this country to support this country rather than doing so on the backs of working people?

Your goal is noble and worthy, but it's time for the US to solve it's own problems at home and stop looking to further exploit the rest of the world.

[muriel_volestrangler]

22. You really think that foreign visitors could fund all that?

OK, let's have a look at your numbers for how many visitors come in now, how much they spend, what rate you'd tax them at, how many you think would stay away as a result, and what the net tax benefit (remembering that they already pay hotel taxes, and sales taxes) would be. Remember to allow for the cost of administering your system.

You might be able to persuade Louisiana to stop refunding sales tax to visitors, though (not that they're alone in that - Canada and most European countries do too).

[Lars39]

9. RFID thingies issued to foreigners on entry were talked about a while ago.

[Toucano]

18. Is the RFID thingy expected to be stapled to their face?

Otherwise, if the presence of the RFID device means people will have to pay more when they check into a hotel, it will be conveniently left in the rental car. There's a pretty big enforcement problem with that.

You could always implant it under the skin and then every single restaurant, hotel, night club, etc. will be scanning every patron to determine if they are subject to the tax.

That's hospitality, baby! And good news for the folks in immigration who get to be surgeons.

[Lars39]

20. It'd probably be fastened to their visa/papers somehow,

at least at first...then the implants!
"Tourism industry? What's that?"

[K-W]

4. How about we organize our economy based on need, not profit.

Just an idea.

[Mythsaje]

10. The argument against this,

be it good or bad, is that taking away the profit motive decreases initiative and motivation to come up with new ideas.

[K-W]

11. What percentage of the population gets profit?

Unless you happen to make most of your money through investing capital, you dont work for profit, you work for a salary or wage so that you can feed, house, clothe and entertain yourself and your family.

The only reason profit drives our economy is that if we dont make a profit, the investor class wont get richer, and they will withdraw thier property from the market.

It is because our system is organized to be driven by profit that it is driven by profit, so your argument is entirely circular.

[Mythsaje]

17. Not my argument

I actually agree more with you than the argument I put forth. I've just talked to a lot of them and have some idea how they think about the subject.

[Egalitariat]

13. Potential profit is how the market determines what is needed

Or do you mean to have a group of like minded people on a centralized "Needs Identification" committee that gets to plan the economy.

That's what they have in North Korea.

[K-W]

23. What kind of a wacky economic theory is that?

Not only does profit obviously not match up to need in the real world, there is nothing about the design of our economy that even pretends that profit is driven by need. The best you get is supply and demand. The fact that needs create a demand creates the potential for a profitable industry supplying that demand, but there are more factors in profit than simply demand. Demand on its own does not create production in capitalism.

It is a complete myth that capitalism magically works towards overall good, that was never a real part of the equation.

"Or do you mean to have a group of like minded people on a centralized "Needs Identification" committee that gets to plan the economy."

Nothing i said could possibly have been construed as suggesting a command economy.

And how is our system really any different than what you describe here? In our economy decisions about life and death are made by unelected like minded people in boardrooms, country clubs, retreats and fundraisers.

I support democracy not any form of oligarchy or autocracy.

[yankeedem]

12. Or how about they don't come to the US?

They don't have to, you know. FYI, hotel taxes leveled by cities, rent a car fees (disguised as airport franchise fees) already are levied.

How about we tax Americans for the lifestyle and benefits Americans want?

[gulliver]

14. Why not just demand tribute? Less paperwork. n/t

[donco6]

15. Actually, this is used somewhat already.

There is a tax on hotel rooms that pursues this purpose already.

[Toucano]

19. Yes, but EVERYONE who rents a hotel room pays that tax.

No just them fur'ners.