And this is why I admire Warren Buffett, the world would be a better place if more billionaires were like him....

Stop Coddling the Super-Rich
By WARREN E. BUFFETT
Published: August 14, 2011

While the poor and middle class fight for us in Afghanistan, and while most Americans struggle to make ends meet, we mega-rich continue to get our extraordinary tax breaks. Some of us are investment managers who earn billions from our daily labors but are allowed to classify our income as “carried interest,” thereby getting a bargain 15 percent tax rate. Others own stock index futures for 10 minutes and have 60 percent of their gain taxed at 15 percent, as if they’d been long-term investors.

These and other blessings are showered upon us by legislators in Washington who feel compelled to protect us, much as if we were spotted owls or some other endangered species. It’s nice to have friends in high places.

Last year my federal tax bill — the income tax I paid, as well as payroll taxes paid by me and on my behalf — was $6,938,744. That sounds like a lot of money. But what I paid was only 17.4 percent of my taxable income — and that’s actually a lower percentage than was paid by any of the other 20 people in our office. Their tax burdens ranged from 33 percent to 41 percent and averaged 36 percent.

[...]

Back in the 1980s and 1990s, tax rates for the rich were far higher, and my percentage rate was in the middle of the pack. According to a theory I sometimes hear, I should have thrown a fit and refused to invest because of the elevated tax rates on capital gains and dividends.

I didn’t refuse, nor did others. I have worked with investors for 60 years and I have yet to see anyone — not even when capital gains rates were 39.9 percent in 1976-77 — shy away from a sensible investment because of the tax rate on the potential gain. People invest to make money, and potential taxes have never scared them off. And to those who argue that higher rates hurt job creation, I would note that a net of nearly 40 million jobs were added between 1980 and 2000. You know what’s happened since then: lower tax rates and far lower job creation.

And the saga continues (bold emphasis mine)...

Jon Stewart Takes On Fox News' 'Class Warfare' Claims (VIDEO)
 

While the GOP wants to make low-level spending cuts to social, educational and other programs, President Obama and company suggest taxing the mega-rich. So it was pretty surprising this week when Warren Buffet wrote his op-ed saying he and his millionaire cohorts ought to be paying more taxes. Fox News called it "Class Warfare," with one pundit even calling Buffett a Socialist, which got a hilarious reaction from Stewart:

"You really have no f**king clue what Socialism is, do you?"

Article on Billionaire Boat People:  totally unreal.  Unbelievable.

I'm sure they will still expect help in the event of a disaster - paid for by other countries 'cause they will be "too big to fail."

Kudos to Neophiles like Mr. Thiel who are willing to try 'new' things :3

(remember folks:  why do you live in your country and live the way you do?  Probably because you were born there and I think there are certain interests who would like you to not think very hard aboot your country)

The USA after 1776 is an intentional 'created country'.  Russia is a created society (each time it gets taken over the history books get wiped clean -- 'Russian' literature was intentionally invented to cement the 'Russian' character).

There's the Venus Project.

Here's a cool list of Intentional Communities right now.

I can already see people here on WC factionalizing into different groups -- the Mudders, who don't want to leave Earth.  The Orbiters, who like Earth and are afraid of space, but really love zero grav, so they live in habitats orbiting Earth.  The Naturalists, who believe in Nature as Queen, so live according to as little interference with Nature as possible.  We have the Spacers, who so love space that they don't like planets, so they always spend their time travelling.  And so on.

The goal of making everyone equally rich isn't to make one world view, but, rather, what secularism does well -- giving everyone the opportunity to live as they want to live.

I spoke too soon -- welcome to SPACE TOURISM!

Didn't Kevin Kostner already make WaterWorld?

Rev John, yes and it was a disaster on so many levels  ;-o

Calling Warren Buffett a socialist?  That's absolutely hilarious.

There are just so many reasons to be thankful for Fox News.

Hi chansen,

Sometimes you wonder how hard it must be to write for the Daily Show when Fox vomits nonsense like this more regularly than Old Faithful blows steam.

Grace and peace to you.

John

It must feel like they're cheating, some days.  Like sitting at a multiple choice test, and the answers are already highlighted for you.

I think the main problem with writing jokes about Fox News, is trying to come up with something other than the obvious joke that almost anyone could write.  That, and having people sit and watch Fox, 24/7.  Those people are underpaid.

Is Socialism a rare case in a capital ideal?

Sort of like intellect in an emotional social order ... pure chaos ... like the conception of p'un-dite ... in other words that' a word of phun directed against the GUIse in the other boat that haven't seen themselves yet ... takes a long step into the far pool of senses ... St Þêðrè ... an old fellow that smells quite ripe with wisdom ... people really hate IT! They come from up there to down here for reflected light as a chance to see themselves as they really are in the Shadow ... quite dark powers to say the least ... intelligence can't understand emotion so why would emotional type understand itself? Puts the metamorphosis of myth in a real bind ... like psyche-IC eve in de light!