Taking from the rich mainly means taxes. But what does it mean to take from the poor and give to the middle class? It means five things:
1). Closing off job opportunities in order to protect the employment of solidly middle class workers from competition from people who would like to make it into the middle class.
2). Closing off education opportunities in deference to middle class teacher’s unions.
3). Closing off access to the marketplace for such essential services as housing, transportation, and medical care – again for the purpose of protecting entrenched (middle class) special interests.
4). Imposing regressive taxes which disproportionately fall on low-income families in order to fund services for people who are definitely not poor.
5). Catering to the bureaucracies that administer what we loosely call the “welfare state,” rather than looking out for the people who are supposed to be helped.
From my point of view it’s the middle class that gets shafted nearly every time. Too poor and working their butts off to make enough money to live on as well as pay their exorbitant taxes on everything associated with making an income as well as having a domicile and the ‘services’ to run it.
The ‘Rich’ are also heavily taxed too, don’t get me wrong there. But they can afford accountants to reduce their tax load and they have the ‘Leisure time’ to get involved in every cause they like as well as running for political office.
Best of all once in Political office or in a Non Governmental Agency/Association they are in the position to do ‘good’ things for those who aren’t in their position. Mostly that takes money though. They’ve got theirs and they want to keep it. The poor have time to scream and yell for more and aren’t afraid of being destructive to show they mean it.
The Middle class is worked to death, to tired to complain and have no time or energy to devote to causes and politics. Guess who gets shafted from both ends of the financial spectrum?
Look around you today... Do you see a vibrant middle class?
Me neither.
The reality is what constituted the middle class just 25-30 years ago has broken apart. If you didn’t do really well and get raises (we all know 20 years of wage stagflation) then you went from solid middle class to lower. If you lost a job and had to start lower you’re now the working poor.
As to the article i’m pretty surprised at Rahm and i hope he beats the unions. Never expected him to actually live up to themes the dems espouse but never act upon. It’s always controlling the money line as opposed to giving people a shot at upward mobility.