If the sunshine seemed a little bit brighter this morning and the air a little bit sweeter, you were surely imagining it -- Obama's new smog allowances keep the skies permanently brown and sour, despite the collapse of American manufacturing. But America is on the rise in one exciting new respect: One of every six Americans is legally poor, and more Americans are officially in poverty than ever before! The Census Bureau just released its 2010 poverty data, which says 46.2 million Americans are The Poors -- that's an all-time record and a 17-year peak in percentage terms. The Census Bureau bases its poverty threshold on family size and number of kids, so it goes from a $10,956 annual income for a sad adult living alone to $21,756 a year for a now-mythical family of four with two children. So remember, when trying to put yourself "in poverty" because you make 20K a year giving handjobs behind Union Station, that you're well above the poverty rate if you're supporting only yourself with that free-lance consultancy income. But if you've got an unemployed "common law husband" and a couple of malnourished orc children hunting rats underneath the half-collapsed trailer you call home, then you are part of the hottest new demographic in this great nation.
That argument of theirs has been countered three different ways and they still keep making it: -poor people do pay taxes in the form of EVERY OTHER tax besides federal income; -increasing taxes on the bottom 50% would get you very much money since they only make 2% of the wealth; -decreasing the purchasing power of the bottom 50% of the population would KILL demand for products and basic services and send the economy into even worse shape.
Uh, how can someone even have a roof over their head on $11K / year? Is that even possible? Hell I would call $30K / year poverty for a single adult, unless you live in an inherited house, have fifteen roomates or are on assistance of some kind or something.
The local talk radio (I was riding with a teatard) nut made the point that Warren Buffet's secretary was eligible for the same 15% capital gains tax that Buffet was, proving his thesis the wealthy should pay more was specious. That same teatard driver told me people on SSDI are loafers who don't deserve it.
Drudge highlights the poverty news with a big photo of Obama serving at a soup kitchen yesterday with other hedes intimating that loss of insurance for people is his fault as well.
That argument of theirs has been countered three different ways and they still keep making it: -poor people do pay taxes in the form of EVERY OTHER tax besides federal income; -increasing taxes on the bottom 50% would get you very much money since they only make 2% of the wealth; -decreasing the purchasing power of the bottom 50% of the population would KILL demand for products and basic services and send the economy into even worse shape.
tl/dr so i guess i don't really understand.
but at least i'm funny!
i would take a clown job if i could get one.
Uh, how can someone even have a roof over their head on $11K / year? Is that even possible? Hell I would call $30K / year poverty for a single adult, unless you live in an inherited house, have fifteen roomates or are on assistance of some kind or something.
The local talk radio (I was riding with a teatard) nut made the point that Warren Buffet's secretary was eligible for the same 15% capital gains tax that Buffet was, proving his thesis the wealthy should pay more was specious. That same teatard driver told me people on SSDI are loafers who don't deserve it.
Drudge highlights the poverty news with a big photo of Obama serving at a soup kitchen yesterday with other hedes intimating that loss of insurance for people is his fault as well.
Who needs foreign terrorists?
Efficiency and progress is ours once more.
Hey, the glass is 5/6ths full.
Time to sneak into Mexico for jobs.
If I may quote Ron Paul, "this is what freedom is all about." These poor people obviously chose poverty. Who can explain it?