Must Read from Paul Krugman: The Angry Rich

[flpoljunkie]

Conclusion... Worth reading in its entirety.

The spectacle of high-income Americans, the world’s luckiest people, wallowing in self-pity and self-righteousness would be funny, except for one thing: they may well get their way. Never mind the $700 billion price tag for extending the high-end tax breaks: virtually all Republicans and some Democrats are rushing to the aid of the oppressed affluent.

You see, the rich are different from you and me: they have more influence. It’s partly a matter of campaign contributions, but it’s also a matter of social pressure, since politicians spend a lot of time hanging out with the wealthy. So when the rich face the prospect of paying an extra 3 or 4 percent of their income in taxes, politicians feel their pain — feel it much more acutely, it’s clear, than they feel the pain of families who are losing their jobs, their houses, and their hopes.

And when the tax fight is over, one way or another, you can be sure that the people currently defending the incomes of the elite will go back to demanding cuts in Social Security and aid to the unemployed. America must make hard choices, they’ll say; we all have to be willing to make sacrifices.

But when they say “we,” they mean “you.” Sacrifice is for the little people.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/20/opinion/20krugman.html?_r=1

[Mass]

1. Excellent column. It is hard to believe that these people are so selfish.

[activa8tr]

2. Loved every line of it ! Thank you!

I wonder why we don't hear this on Morning Joke's show....oh wait, Morning Joke is just that.

[boobooday]

3. This is a must read

And we must do everything we can to shame these people for their selfishness. They are blatantly getting away with it at the moment.

[FiveGoodMen]

4. They don't have any shame.

We need to think of something more concrete.

[butterfly77]

5. Kicked&Recommended!

[Mimosa]

6. A must read! n/t