Coworker's rationale for not taxing the rich

[DaveJ]

I never understood why anyone who is poor or middle class cared if the richest 2-5% were taxed more. So I asked my coworker who is threatened with losing his condo and another property bought with interest only loans. His property has gone down in value, nobody's buying, and he's being paid half as much as he was a few years ago. I think his rationale is quite idiotic but I'll do my best to summarize it.

Me: "Why does it seem like more poor Republicans care if the rich are taxed than the rich care themselves. I bet if there was a survey taken, the rich would care LESS if their taxes were raised than poor and middle class Republicans."

Him (silly tone): "You got to keep hope alive."

Me: "Huh?"

Him: "Well I want to be rich someday. But if I want to go from a 250k/yr income to millions per year, a tax increase would increase would make it harder because it would cut into my return on investment."

Me: "Okay, I want to be rich too. I want to start my own business and if I come up with a great product or service I'll have a nice income year after year and paying a little more in taxes would not be a big deal, as long as I continue to produce something valuable."

Him: "I don't want to do that -- I'm not like you. Most rich people didn't work hard to produce anything. I just want to manipulate the system. I ADMIT IT. I don't want to do anything great, I just want to have lots of money and have fun with it."

Me: "That doesn't seem to be in the American spirit which has traditionally been based on the idea that hard work should pay off."

Him: "Think of it this way, we used to be an agricultural society, then we were an industrial society, now we are information/service based, where maybe people should be able to just make a lot of money and not really have to produce anything."

Me: "Wow, I guess you actually are more socialist than I am. Nothing wrong with that. I guess if you want to game a system that lets you do it, then I don't blame you."


Okay, I had a hard time reconciling our perspectives with that last comment. I felt I should since I sit in the same room with him all day.

For quite awhile now, I really have felt that Republicans are more anti-Capitalistic than Democrats, given the fact that they really do not believe in the idea that money should be a measure of one's accomplishment. They think that money comes from schemes and manipulation. And honestly, I've found that the more I talk to a Republicans, they almost always admit it.

[DS1]

1. That's pretty standard

[muntrv]

2. Your co-worker wants "something for nothing."

[baldguy]

3. "As long as massas happy, ahs happy."

Until he sells you down the river.

[Mind_your_head]

4. Shhhhh........Keep 'em dumb.......

That just means more money for 'me'!

[sendero]

5. another moron dreamer..

... who will never have jack shit.

[Oregone]

6. There is a lot to the picture he is missing...

First off, if he went from 250 K/yr, to millions, then statistically, this is normally carried on the back of low-paid workers who could at least use some social services to keep them afloat (if they don't get them, they lose their homes, health, and some get angry and kill him in an alleyway on his way home from work). Having millions in a hellish high-crime environment is probably overrated...what are going going to buy? Platinum coated titanium bars on your windows? Further, doesn't seem like that environment is a profitable environment to continue to do business in...If you do not reinvest earnings into a society, the society is incapable of profiting from, and instable for business.

Speaking of statistics...VERY unlikely to happen anyway. Period. Like, tell him to start playing the lottery. It takes less effort.

Thirdly...ask him if he would love to have 8 million dollars (of course he would). Ask him the things he would do with it...then ask him all the things he couldn't do if he had 4 million (after a tax rate). He probably couldn't come up with a lot of fun stuff you could do with 8 million that you couldn't do with 4. But, he is clearly not happy, because he wants more...he needs that 8, as that is what he feels entitled to. Than say fine, keep your 8 million if you made 16--I already know you would be damn happy with it. (what I am getting to, is that these incomprehensible amounts do not grant any more access to reasonable things as you become arbitrarily close to infinity, but the only problem is how people perceive it (they want the biggest number and feel cheated if they don't have it))


Personally, this American spirit needs to be crushed. Raise the taxes. We need less kids thinking they will and should grow up being millionaires. We are the people, not the powers that be. We will never be the upper echelon. This viral thinking of his keeps him fucking passive. Thats all it is. Religion and economic theory passify people to make them continue to bend over.

[DaveJ]

8. His ROI would be zero in a stagnant economy/depression.

That's one thing I forgot to mention.

The rich invest, sure, but people buy, and if people have less money to spend, there is nothing to invest in because people aren't buying anything.

That's what he fails to see even with his interest in economics and knowledge of investments. If people cannot afford to buy anything, the only thing left to invest in is commodities like energy, food, and clothing. And the prices of those commodities would then just go up, because investors expect a ROI. We'd then be left with an economy where people could afford nothing at all, struggling just to buy energy, food, and clothing since those are the only things left that people are still forced to buy out of necessity.

But Republican voters do not think that deeply.

[monktonman]

7. Dont forget this other little puke gem....

Your not rich because your lazy.

My girlfriend is a quality control officer at a meat packing plant.
Her supervisor told her that democrats are "jealous" of the rich and
since everyone has the same oppurtunity to be rich, those that arent
are just LAZY.
This coming from a guy that might be turning 50k a year.

[EmperorHasNoClothes]

9. Your coworker sounds like a real genius.

"people should be able to just make a lot of money and not really have to produce anything."

Uh..... yeah.


Although, even he probably knows more about the economy than John McCain.