Posted on 12/29/2004 5:03:43 PM PST by FairOpinion
Here's a simple proposal that would capture the world's attention, and which a majority of Americans would almost certainly support. President Bush should announce that because of the colossal losses suffered by millions of people in Southeast Asia and East Africa, he will make an exception to his promise not to raise taxes. Bush should propose a Tsunami Disaster Relief Surtax for 2004 and 2005, with very simple components that everyone can understand.
Since Americans, like others, are now experiencing both deep compassion for the surviving family members of the Tsunami's victims and a sense of impotence at the sheer magnitude of the calamity, it is unlikely that there would be much opposition to such a proposal -- especially if it contains an invitation to the other developed nations to provide similar funds. I believe that Americans would overwhelmingly embrace the proposal.
So -- where is the imagination in our national leadership?
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PNS contributor Robert S. Rivkin is a San Francisco lawyer who has trained foreign judges and prosecutors on human rights and rule of law issues for international development projects.
He should check his facts, some of which are in this excellent Investors Business Daily editorial:
Last year Paula Dobriansky, State Department undersecretary for global affairs, reported "Americans privately give at least $34 billion overseas annually."
That does not include the $10 billion in official U.S. foreign aid, though it does include $18 billion in remittances immigrants send to their home countries.
That still leaves $16 billion sent across the world, which doesn't sound too stingy to us.
I vote NOOOOOOOO
Consider the source - Pacific News Service.
Absolute idiocy. If we have to do this for something *completely* out of our hands, then the islamic countries should be taxed for every attack that they directly breed.
see my tag line....
Since Dems are so compassionate, let's pass a Democrat Compassion Act whereby Dems, and only Dems, are taxed 75% of their income to fund the compassionate programs of their choice....
ROTFLOL!!!!
These liberals are SHAMELESS!
They climb up on a pile of tsunami corpses to make a stump speech....
I read this thing and thought that this was a well intentioned but rather dry attempt by a conservative to parody the bleeding-heart leftist position...
None you say?
I should have known.
This is why you have to love liberals- no problem exists that cannot be solved by more taxes.
(President Bush should announce that because of the colossal losses suffered by millions of people in Southeast Asia and East Africa, he will make an exception to his promise not to raise taxes. )
...so that we, Democrats, can beat him politically to a pulp just like we did to his dad after George Mitchell bamboozled him into raising taxes (read my lips).
Name a temporary tax that was temporary.
Or FOOD, which is NEVER discussed.
Consider the source, then LYAO!!!
I say we reappropriate any planned UN dues payment and World Bank payment for Tsunami Relief.
Sad that the Left would exploit this tragedy to try and coerce President Bush into acting idiotically.
Judging from another article of his, http://www.bark.net.au/Globalisation/gloart13_abughraib.htm , I'd say it's serious.
Of course the left is going to politicize this. On another thread, I read where a un worker complained that the resuced/found children didn't have any id. Hint- microchip.
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