Musings of a GVChamp

What if we cut military spending?

Yeah, cut everything. We can *easily* do this if we cut some of the big money burners. Military, Social Security, and Medicare, and all of a sudden the budget is no longer a problem.

Military; we don't need to waste money on useless wars. Medicare and Social Security: old people are old for a reason. They are no longer useful to society. I don't see why we should have to care for them.

The CBO puts Defense Spending today at just over 4% of GDP, and the baseline scenario assumes we cut defense spending to the high 3's (3.8, 3.9).

What we need to do, is to formulate a serious plan for the rapid withdrawal of forces from Iraq and Afghanistan. We accomplished what we needed to do, we need to train the native forces to defend themselves, and only send in precision strike teams to take out high-priority targets. The "War" is over, we won, now it's just clean up - but at the same time, it's like pulling a knife out of a wound, if you do it too fast and carelessly, you can cause a ton of damage.

Military; we don't need to waste money on useless wars. Medicare and Social Security: old people are old for a reason. They are no longer useful to society. I don't see why we should have to care for them.

I agree. We sucked every drop of labor out of them, and its time to toss them aside like the rags they are. Why don't we do this for combat veterans too? They can't do anything but take up tax dollars with their free health that us taxpayers pay for.

The problem is never a paucity of resources, it is always gluttony.

Socialise healthcare. Problem solved.

But yes, taxes need to go up. I have absolutely no idea where all this NO MORE TAXES BYAAH came from: taxes raised eight times, I believe, during the Reagan administration. Quite simply the IRS needs a bigger budget and tax avoidance / evasion are way too easy. Tax loopholes for corporations need to be closed (the corporate tax rate is high and fine but unenforced), taxes on wealthy individuals bumped up a bit, and tax credits for your school-age son's haircut eliminated.

Of course there are other, new taxes that should be introduced but I can already envision the red-themed commercials about "Planned Economy" if someone dared propose. A VAT combined with lowered taxes on mid- and low-income earners is one idea, or small taxes on foreign exchange transactions (we had one until the '60s). Alas, these are about as likely to happen as socialised medicine.

Oh well. I'll see you in Sweden!

Wouldn't a progressive tax (say increase the tax for every flat % amount after $250,000) be a decent option for tax hikes?

Wouldn't a progressive tax (say increase the tax for every flat % amount after $250,000) be a decent option for tax hikes?

No. Well, it would be part of it, but that group of people does not have enough money to cover the whole deficit.

Example: The ten year cost of the Bush Tax Cuts on the upper 2% are estimated at $700 billion, IIRC (someone correct me if I am wrong). That means TEN YEARS of repealing the Bush tax cuts still can't cover the ONE YEAR deficit in 2021...and that budget figure in 2021 assumes that the Bush tax cuts are already being repealed.

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/ezra-klein/2010/04/can_we_close_the_budget_defici.html

This is a good-enough summary. We need to tax wealthy people more, but we can't stop there, or so it looks like to me.

The US should add in a VAT and a carbon tax, IMO

Those concerned that taxes are too low can get ahead of the curve and send the IRS extra now.

Most people are willing to pay more in taxes to preserve education for their children, better healthcare, infrastructure projects (especially one that create jobs), and feed poor kids. A majority of Americans aren't raving greedy !@#$%bags who refuse to put down a penny to promote the collective good that would sooner see people die of preventable diseases than part with a ten dollar bill. See the recent rebuke over Medicare for more details.

Those concerned that deficits and debts are too high can get ahead of the curve and send the IRS extra now.

Most people are willing to pay more in taxes to preserve education for their children, better healthcare, infrastructure projects (especially one that create jobs), and feed poor kids. A majority of Americans aren't raving greedy !@#$%bags who refuse to put down a penny to promote the collective good that would sooner see people die of preventable diseases than part with a ten dollar bill. See the recent rebuke over Medicare for more details.Those concerned that deficits and debts are too high can get ahead of the curve and send the IRS extra now.

The recent rebuke over Medicare has to do with Americans thinking much of the budget is made up of waste, welfare, and foreign aid. This is also why the majority think it would be a good idea if the US doesn't raise the debt ceiling: it will finally force those greedy politicians to finally cut all that wasteful spending on poor countries and spend the dollars on dramatically underfunded programs like Medicare.

If that sounds like nonsense, it's because Americans believe in fairy tales right now.

Also old people vote more than everyone else.

Those concerned that deficits and debts are too high can get ahead of the curve and send the IRS extra now.

That's fine with me. Sounds like we can rectify this without official raising taxes at all!

Hopefully those greedy Hollywood stars, and musicians will send their millions to the state. I'm tired of the greediness of Hollywood and athletes. They need to do more. I propose an entertainment tax be placed upon their revenue, for the good of the state.

They say that there are two certainties in life, death and taxes.

And I prefer death since that is only collected once.

The CBO puts Defense Spending today at just over 4% of GDP, and the baseline scenario assumes we cut defense spending to the high 3's (3.8, 3.9).

-cut military spending a LOT more than to the "high 3s" lmao

-raise taxes on the rich and the corporations to even reagan levels

problem solved you're welcome america

The ever-growing, unfunded liability known as Social Security (and Medicare, of course) would be so much easier to solve if old people tasted better.

The CBO puts Defense Spending today at just over 4% of GDP, and the baseline scenario assumes we cut defense spending to the high 3's (3.8, 3.9).

-cut military spending a LOT more than to the "high 3s" lmao-raise taxes on the rich and the corporations to even reagan levelsproblem solved you're welcome america

How much money do you think we can get from raising taxes on the rich?

old people are old for a reason. They are no longer useful to society. I don't see why we should have to care for them.

Maybe it's because they've been paying into the system for their whole life?

Progressive taxes are good because it makes the normal people feel better about having to pay their, lower, taxes. GVC is correct that there aren't enough of them to cover the whole bill.

However, a large stack of it could be collected from closing corporate offshoring loopholes, and a small transaction tax on financial markets (which would have the additional benefit of reducing the sort of high frequency trading that can cause major market instability).

And that's still an unsustainable deficit. We need 2.9% at maximum, and preferably something under 1%

Surely the sustainable level is 0?

Increase revenue by legalizing things and taxing them. For example, marijuana and prostitution.