Free Republic

I've recently discovered the wonders of "progressive" taxation. Earning a pretty average salary I never thought I would be complaining about higher taxes and here I am. In a nutshell, I decided to go to graduate school. My employer being very nice decided to pay for all of it. Then I discovered that if your employer pays for undergraduate class it's tax free. If it is graduate school it's taxed at 33% as income. What does that do? Well, each graduate class costs about 6k. I take 6-7 classes a year. 6x7= 42. Tack on 42k to my regular income...

While many studies answer the ques?tion of who pays taxes in America, the question of who gets the most government spending is often overlooked. Just as some Americans bear a larger portion of the nation's tax burden than others, some Americans also receive a larger share of the nation's government spending. This report summarizes the key findings of a comprehensive 2007 Tax Foundation study of federal, state and local taxes and government spending. The results show that when we consider the distribution of government spending as well as taxes, it provides a dramatically altered view of how U.S. fiscal policy...

Indeed, what would happen to the poker community if something like that were to occur? Let’s make an outrageous assumption and say that people would still actually play in a casino that enforces this rule through whatever means. The incentive of being a winning poker player would almost all be lost. Poker players would each try to earn enough to make a living for themselves, but not make so much as to get themselves into the top 20% of total players. This would indeed be counter-productive. Let us imagine even further that all of the money won or lost at...

A Battlefield for Tax Reform There are a few significant battlefields in the war for tax reform. One of them is Free Republic. What makes the Free Republic battlefield significant is that the debate is at the cutting edge. The debate on Free Republic is the most current and most knowledgeable. It is a year ahead of other significant battlefields (radio talk shows, political town-hall meetings, conversations among neighbors and coworkers.) The trend on Free Republic with respect to tax reform is going to show up in the real world. Free Republic is a tiny segment of the world, albeit...

GENERAL WESLEY CLARK … NOT EXACTLY A HISTORIAN  Retired Army General Wesley Clark has been very effective in keeping his face and opinions in the media forefront the past year or so.  There’s a reason for that. Political aspirations.  Clark is toying with the idea of announcing as a Democratic candidate for President of the United States.  Truth is, he’s after the number two spot.  Vice Presidential candidate for now, the Oval Office Later. Clark was a guest on Tim Russert’s Meet the Press this past Sunday. The questioning turned to Clark’s political ambitions and his feelings on the Bush...