[Toddsterpatriot]

I hate to think that the phrase "repay the tax cut" assumes that all wealth belongs to the public and any tax-cut is a gift from the government to the tax payer.

Remember, I'm curious what you do for a living. With your concern for the government's revenue I wonder if you are a government economist.

Inquiring minds want to know. Thanks.

[remember]

The one way to guarantee that that doesn't happen would be to require all taxpayers to repay the tax cut, plus the 4% that it's costing the government to carry the debt, when they retire. Then they can pocket the $4 billion savings that you mention and leave the next generation with no greater burden. Do you favor that?

Only if the government pays back all the Social Security contributions plus the 10% the contributions would have earned in the stock market. Do you favor that?

As I replied to expat_panama, that was not a serious suggestion. I simply said that it is the only way to guarantee that the next generation does not get burdened by the additional debt. It was in response to your stunning proposal that, because the government can borrow money at 4% whereas regular people must borrow it at 8%, a $100 billion tax cut represents a yearly $4 billion tax cut that will benefit our children as well as ourselves. Where will the next generation get their yearly $4 billion tax cut if we spend it all now?

It's fine to argue that technology will once again bail us out and that our children will be prosperous enough to handle the extra debt that we leave them. Or you can argue that the exploding debt burden projected by the most recent budget (see http://home.att.net/~rdavis2/pro2006.html) is incorrect. But to suggest that our current tax cut represents some magical tax cut to them is just plain dishonest. It represents a tax cut to us and additional debt in the short term. What it means in the long term is yet to be seen.

Remember, I'm curious what you do for a living. With your concern for the government's revenue I wonder if you are a government economist.

No, my work has nothing to do with the government. I'm just one of those old-time fiscal conservatives!