Stop coddling the super-rich, Warren Buffett says

[IR5FORMUMSIE 850]

Frank McCourt is paying very low taxes by international standards.

You are paying very low taxes by international standards.

I am paying very low taxes by international standards.

Clear?

About what, a lack of civility? If we are paying such low taxes and we're going broke then we obviously aren't paying enough. I'm not suggesting that we emulate Inland Revenue rates or procedures under Wilson or Heath, I'm just saying that the tax cuts are irresponsible and destructive as is overspending.

[mawilson 2,133]

If we are paying such low taxes and we're going broke then we obviously aren't paying enough.

Yep. "We aren't paying enough" is not the same as "the rich aren't paying enough" message you've been hammering home.

[IR5FORMUMSIE 850]

Yep. "We aren't paying enough" is not the same as "the rich aren't paying enough" message you've been hammering home.

Not quite, the people who need to ante up are those who haven't been paying enough, viz. the wealthy. That is EXACTLY what I've been saying or do you believe in overtaxation?

CLEAR???

Edited August 16, 2011 by IR5FORMUMSIE

[mawilson 2,133]

Not quite, the people who need to ante up are those who haven't been paying enough, viz. the wealthy.

That's you.

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

That's you.

They are not going to be happy until all the wealth in the country is confiscated by soldiers carrying little red books, and the rich fat cats are scrubbing toilets in metro stations wearing white jumpsuits with "Kick Me" embroidered on the backside.

[scandal 951]

"They" are those Americans who demand entitlements and government programs.

I don't include myself in that category, as I've never claimed any benefits or asked for help from the government, nor do I intend to do so. The nanny state, cradle-to-grave entitlement society is not what America is about.

I recognize the value of certain government services - it's easy to see how roads, schools, police can make the country better for everyone - but those are a tiny fraction of the overall budget.

I want to see our entitlement programs and many other federal programs continue. So by your definition I am "they". Like you, I've never directly benefited from the Entitlement programs, I've never yet collected a dime in Social Security or Medicare, and never expect to have anything to do with Medicaid. I've only ever paid into these.

I'm perfectly fine with paying for them. I do expect to benefit from SS and Medicare in my own retirement some 20 years away. I do understand the social inter-generational contact all of us signed up to when the legislation was passed for these programs (New Deal in the 30s, Great Society in the 60s).

For a wide swathe of the American public, these programs ARE EXACTLY what America is about. A society that rewards hard work and private enterprise, but also one that shows compassion for the less fortunate, is concerned about the sick and elderly and disabled. We are a civilized society, not a cowboy frontier. Those are American values, and I'll stand up for them anytime, anywhere. We ALL benefit from living in a society that cares and has compassion and pulls along the less fortunate.

I've seen societies first hand that have greater divides between haves and have-nots - Brazil comes to mind. I've seen the private security forces and gated communities the wealthy need to maintain that precious divide. America is pretty divided along such class lines already. Destroying our entitlement programs will only weaken us further.

I keep a photo of FDR on my sig line with the phrase "We Need You".

Surely we do. By golly, by gum Orphan Annie, we do need you.

We do, we do, we do.

I remember the FDR comparisons when Obama was elected. I dared hope they might be true.

I've been disappointed. Obama is not FDR. We Need FDR.

[Hilarious Clinton 452]

Gifts to the United States Government

How do I make a contribution to the U.S. government?

Citizens who wish to make a general donation to the U.S. government may send contributions to a specific account called "Gifts to the United States." This account was established in 1843 to accept gifts, such as bequests, from individuals wishing to express their patriotism to the United States. Money deposited into this account is for general use by the federal government and can be available for budget needs. These contributions are considered an unconditional gift to the government. Financial gifts can be made by check or money order payable to the United States Treasury and mailed to the address below.

Gifts to the United States

U.S. Department of the Treasury

Credit Accounting Branch

3700 East-West Highway, Room 622D

Hyattsville, MD 20782

Any tax-related questions regarding these contributions should be directed to the Internal Revenue Service at (800) 829-1040.

Warren… if the government was so worthy of your money and so much better at spending it than you are, why are you donating to private charity instead of donating to the government?

Pay up.... Libtards......

[Bad_Daddy 2,209]

I remember the FDR comparisons when Obama was elected. I dared hope they might be true.

I've been disappointed. Obama is not FDR. We Need FDR.

Until we see Obama hand over Eastern Europe to the Russians knowing full well it will mean the sure death of hundreds of thousands of Eastern Europeans, we won't know for sure if he matches up with good ol FDR.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

What benefits are they reaping from paying for grandma's Medicare and grandpa's Social Security? Or food stamps for some worthless welfare case?

Whatever they use (law enforcement, CDC, EPA, FAA, USPS, etc) is a small fraction of the budget.

You're incapable of seeing the bigger picture? Or do you just not want to see it? This country wouldn't be what it is today were it not for the social safety nets - however rudimentary they are compared to other developed countries. Now we can speculate all day and all night as to what this country would be today without those programs but neither you nor I know exactly what the country would be like. What we do know is that there isn't a wealthy country out there - anywhere in the world - that does not take care of it's poor, sick and elderly. We know that any and all places in the world where the poor, sick and elderly are left by the wayside have not produced even a tiny fraction of the wealth that this country has produced. These two things we know. And with that knowledge, it would take an incredible amount of faith to believe that somehow, this country would have gone down a more prosperous path without Medicare, Social Security and Medicaid. It would take a Sarah Palin or Michele Bachmann type blind faith to believe that. I'm a bit more reality oriented than those two and their likes. Sorry.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

They are not going to be happy until all the wealth in the country is confiscated by soldiers carrying little red books, and the rich fat cats are scrubbing toilets in metro stations wearing white jumpsuits with "Kick Me" embroidered on the backside.

This nonsense is really becoming as stale as you, old man.

[mawilson 2,133]

What we do know is that there isn't a wealthy country out there - anywhere in the world - that does not take care of it's poor, sick and elderly.

Medicare and Social Security are entitlement programs, not safety nets for the poor.

I wouldn't have a problem with them if that's all they were.

These programs cost us over a trillion dollars per year (2 trillion if you add Medicaid and other entitlements). That's a hell of a lot of poor people. Except there aren't that many poor people. Most boomers can pay for their own damn retirement and healthcare. I'm sure you see them every day - playing golf and frolicking in Florida's azure blue waters and silky white sands.

[Obama 2012 1,714]

I keep a photo of FDR on my sig line with the phrase "We Need You".

Surely we do. By golly, by gum Orphan Annie, we do need you.

We do, we do, we do.

I remember the FDR comparisons when Obama was elected. I dared hope they might be true.

I've been disappointed. Obama is not FDR. We Need FDR.

FDR was a criminal piece of ####### and tried to be a Tyrant.

We don't need garbage like that anywhere near the White House.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Medicare and Social Security are entitlement programs, not safety nets for the poor.

As they are in any other developed country out there. There is not one wealthy country on this planet that does not provide non means-tested retirement income and non means-tested healthcare security for the elderly. And there is not one wealthy country on earth that does not provide at least as much assistance to the poor and sick as this country does. Not one. When you look at countries that have less of a social safety net and less of a retirement income program, they are all less well off than we are and less well off than the developed countries are.

Edited August 16, 2011 by Mr. Big Dog

[sly_wolf 199]

Frank McCourt is paying very low taxes by international standards.

You are paying very low taxes by international standards.

I am paying very low taxes by international standards.

Clear?

As a middle class taxpayer I dont find that I am paying low taxes at all. When you combine property taxes plus local and state taxes there is not that much difference compared to Canada (excluding Quebec) which has medicare.

Propperty taxes in NY state are horrible. The wealthy dont care since they can afford it.

[Obama 2012 1,714]

As a middle class taxpayer I dont find that I am paying low taxes at all. When you combine property taxes plus local and state taxes there is not that much difference compared to Canada (excluding Quebec) which has medicare.

Propperty taxes in NY state are horrible. The wealthy dont care since they can afford it.

perhaps you should talk to your state/local governments about that then.