[galarneau]

With all the talk of how G.W.'s administration favors the wealthy, I started wondering how much you have to make before you'll be better off financially with GW in the White House?

$50k, $100k, $250k

Seriously. I know very little about economics, so I'd be interested in hearing from people with some knowledge on the subject.

For what it's worth, I started thinking about this because I was "raised" Democrat, and think Democrat, but will be making $100-150k in a few years.

[BRussell]

Kerry says he'll raise taxes on those making over $200,000, back to where they were in 2000.

[constrictor]

"Education......."

[Timo]

It's not about income, it's about assets.

So, to rephrase,
"how much do I have to own before it pays..."

[Krusty]

There is actually no set limit. Its more the breakdown of what you make. If you can swindle (um. ... earn) more money through means other than work, you'll make a fine Republican.

Seriously, investment ("capital gains") income is HEAVILY favored tax-wise. The MAXIMUM capital gains rate is a mere 15% (MUCH less than most people pay unless they're really poor.). Even if you only made 50k per year, you'll come out better as a Republican tax-wise if 20k is from a job and 30k is from investment than you would come out if all 50k were from your job. See, at 50k you'd have to pay something like 27% federal taxes PLUS 7.65% in payroll tax (for Soc. Security and Medicare. also known as FICA). If you get the money from investment, you'll pay 15% and no FICA.

[spacefreak]

Originally posted by galarneau:
With all the talk of how G.W.'s administration favors the wealthy, I started wondering how much you have to make before you'll be better off financially with GW in the White House?

$50k, $100k, $250k

Seriously. I know very little about economics, so I'd be interested in hearing from people with some knowledge on the subject.

For what it's worth, I started thinking about this because I was "raised" Democrat, and think Democrat, but will be making $100-150k in a few years.

It doesn't matter if you're a Republican or not. If you pay any taxes, you're better off. And because our economy is the fastest growing economy in the industralized world right now, you'll continue to be better off.

In general, I think we all should constantly be rooting for lower taxes and individual empowerment. I don't want the government taking my money.

What sucks is that if I go to plead my case for a raise, the government is practically standing beside me knowing that they get a raise from my hard work as well. That's crap - their getting a cut of everything I earn. It's like the damn mafia.

Ultimately, I'd like to see a flat tax. I know congressional Republicans are aiming to streamline the entire tax code, or even phase-out the IRS in favor of a national sales tax. I think this is an interesting concept, much like the flat tax.

I like the Republican efforts to reform these old systems of ours, because their just not efficient. Pouring more and more money to sure up these archaic systems is just not working. If businesses can revamp how they do business, there's no reason the government can't as well.

[BRussell]

Originally posted by spacefreak:
In general, I think we all should constantly be rooting for lower taxes and individual empowerment. I don't want the government taking my money.

What I don't get is how Republicans talk about taxes as if they have no relationship to anything else, like, ferinstance, oh, say, spending? Let's just cut tax revenues in half, if it doesn't matter. Why not? Deficits don't matter, right?

If Republicans actually cut spending to go along with their tax cuts, then we'd have a good debate. But Republican politicians spend more than Democrats, and then they tax less. It's not a philosophical debate about the amount of government, it's a debate about whether the laws of arithmetic are valid or not.

[Krusty]

Originally posted by spacefreak:

What sucks is that if I go to plead my case for a raise, the government is practically standing beside me knowing that they get a raise from my hard work as well. That's crap - their getting a cut of everything I earn. It's like the damn mafia.

Ultimately, I'd like to see a flat tax. I know congressional Republicans are aiming to streamline the entire tax code, or even phase-out the IRS in favor of a national sales tax. I think this is an interesting concept, much like the flat tax.

I like the Republican efforts to reform these old systems of ours, because their just not efficient. Pouring more and more money to sure up these archaic systems is just not working. If businesses can revamp how they do business, there's no reason the government can't as well.

paragraph 1: the gov't provides an infrastructure without which your would never earn a dime in the first place. People can argue over how much they should be required to pay to the government, but unless you are living on your own plot of land, growing your own food and are completely self sufficient, you ARE getting something from that infrastructure.

para 2: flat tax is interesting. national sales tax is the worst taxation idea in a long time. Its regressive and unreliable. NOT something you'd want to base budgetary plans on.

para 3: excellent point.

[typoon]

Originally posted by BRussell:
What I don't get is how Republicans talk about taxes as if they have no relationship to anything else, like, ferinstance, oh, say, spending? Let's just cut tax revenues in half, if it doesn't matter. Why not? Deficits don't matter, right?

If Republicans actually cut spending to go along with their tax cuts, then we'd have a good debate. But Republican politicians spend more than Democrats, and then they tax less. It's not a philosophical debate about the amount of government, it's a debate about whether the laws of arithmetic are valid or not.

Really How is that when the Democrats where in control of Congress for all those years in the 80's and before when we had such a HUGE deficit? Both parties are guilt of this.

[Mrjinglesusa]

Originally posted by typoon:
Really How is that when the Democrats where in control of Congress for all those years in the 80's and before when we had such a HUGE deficit? Both parties are guilt of this.

Republican President. With a Republican Congress and Democrat President (Clinton) we had surplus. With both Republican Congress AND Republican President we have deficits again. Don't know what the hell this means but it's interesting none the less.

[CRASH HARDDRIVE]

Originally posted by galarneau:
With all the talk of how G.W.'s administration favors the wealthy, I started wondering how much you have to make before you'll be better off financially with GW in the White House?

$50k, $100k, $250k

Seriously. I know very little about economics, so I'd be interested in hearing from people with some knowledge on the subject.

For what it's worth, I started thinking about this because I was "raised" Democrat, and think Democrat, but will be making $100-150k in a few years.

If �thinking like a Democrat� means setting yourself up with a guaranteed excuse for failure that you can later pawn off on whoever is president, and give yourself a consolation prize of having plenty of company to wallow in self-created misery with, then I suggest you start thinking like a person with a brain. Bullcrap misused political labels won�t make you a very good �guaranteed-failure� crutch, but it could make you a chump.

Whatever amount you make, be smart with it. If you earn a decent income that makes it possible to invest (and six-figures certainly passes that mark) then there IS NO good excuse for not building wealth with it. Period. Invest a hefty sum every year -even the majority of it- and live frugally with the rest. After years of doing this (wisely) you�ll be set.

For all their constant whining, the class envy crowd (guaranteed) won�t float you if you blow your dough as you make it because you�re �thinking like a Democrat�. It won�t be Bush�s fault or anyone else�s if you piss away the income of your career years without planning your own financial future, because you got snookered by a bunch of �gloom and doom� class-envy bullcrap from the �CAN'T DO� crowd. Being �better off financially� will be entirely up to you, and it has absolutely nothing to do with petty party politics, or what �excuse� is in the whitehouse.