Now they tell us: NYT says Health Care Bill "attacks wealth inequality" to end "age of Reagan"

washington examiner ^ | 3/24/10 | Mark Hemingway

[Nachum]

If you thought the health care bill was just about, well, health care, guess again! It's about income redistribution as much as anything:

For all the political and economic uncertainties about health reform, at least one thing seems clear: The bill that President Obama signed on Tuesday is the federal government’s biggest attack on economic inequality since inequality began rising more than three decades ago.

Over most of that period, government policy and market forces have been moving in the same direction, both increasing inequality. The pretax incomes of the wealthy have soared since the late 1970s, while their tax rates have fallen more than rates for the middle class and poor.

Nearly every major aspect of the health bill pushes in the other direction. This fact helps explain why Mr. Obama was willing to spend so much political capital on the issue, even though it did not appear to be his top priority as a presidential candidate. Beyond the health reform’s effect on the medical system, it is the centerpiece of his deliberate effort to end what historians have called the age of Reagan.

Obviously, there's quite a bit of cant in how the Times' economic reporter is framing the tax and inequality issue. I would bother pointing out the counterarguments, but I think the New York Times' liberalism on such matters is widely accepted. (Cafe Hayek takes apart the claims on inequailty here.) But the broad point that the health care bill is really about income redistribution is revealing in and of itself.

Also, there's this admission from the Times:

[Oceander]

That would be a good subtitle. The title should allude to the infamous Mein Kampf of course - although perhaps in some dimwitted liberal way so that they don't actually realize what they're alluding to.

[your local physicist]

The only way to reduce income inequality in the long run is to improve the big-city schools by: 1) re-imposing discipline and order in these schools and calling off the trial lawyers who will sue school districts and teachers for any serious attempt at restoring order, 2) making learning the top priority in these schools, 3) allowing the local police to break up youth gangs, arrest and prosecute their leaders and remove the gangs from the streets, 4) providing security for teachers, students, and staff at these schools, 5) expelling and removing kids who disrupt teaching and learning in the classroom (again calling off the trial lawyers who only want to line their pockets by suing the schools) and putting these kids in other schools with extra discipline or putting their education on hold until they stop their disruptive behavior, and 6) most importantly, give parents vouchers that they can use to pay for tuition at any school and make public and private schools compete for students. Competition will improve quality and discipline and make the school administrators push hard for real reform and improvement.

Of course, these reforms annoy a few of the democrats' biggest groups of supporters and thus they will never be implemented as long as democrats control federal and state governments. So until we have more conservatives in government, income inequality will probably increase despite all efforts by liberals to reduce it.

[CaliforniaCon]

RE: “Next... open your veins and let them have your blood. My only question now is: ‘How soon do I have to go to the bank and demand my CASH... and can we all do it on the same day?”

*************

This is the question that keeps me up at night — that, and the 401K/IRA theft probably coming up soon.

It’s really difficult to convince banks to hand over your money, and even amounts less than $9,999 arouse suspicion. I may begin very soon taking smaller amounts out in cash from each bank, at varying intervals, so there is no weekly pattern at any one bank. Some of these banks dare to ask you what you are doing with the funds. Just be nice and say you are making a loan to a sibling or helping a kid buy a used car or whatever. NONE of their business but it’s easier that way.

Just be sure you have a good place to put the cash — if it’s a safe place, you may as well do it because no matter which institution you put it in, the feds are gonna get it when they quickly run out of funds for this monstrosity.

I’m really worried about the 401K/IRA scenarios though, since if we take the funds out before 59 1/2 we risk a penalty as well as huge tax burden. The basic taxes alone eat up much of your total take.

I hear moderates saying ‘they can’t take retirement funds, they don’t belong to them.’ Really, how did we get THIS far into socialism? The left takes what it wants — it’s up to us to keep it away from them.

[a fool in paradise]

But the Pravda Media has said it is wrong to call this Socialist. What else IS Marxism?

[SMARTY]

A safe place was my first concern. Actually I am more worried about something like fire than about theft.

But I can take care of that too. I am SERIOUSLY thinking about getting my cash out of there. I mean it. As far as other retirement stuff, they have already devalued appropriated so much of that already that it’s a joke.

[your local physicist]

Don’t worry. The American people are much smarter than the MSM. The people know socialism and Marxism when they see it right in front of them.

[keepitreal]

The pretax incomes of the wealthy have soared since the late 1970s, while their tax rates have fallen more than rates for the middle class and poor.

The poor could have a 75% tax rate. It doesn't matter. With all the deductions and tax credits - THEY HAVE NO TAXABLE INCOME. These folks outright lie.

[SunkenCiv]

Obviously, there's quite a bit of cant in how the Times' economic reporter is framing the tax and inequality issue. I would bother pointing out the counterarguments, but I think the New York Times' liberalism on such matters is widely accepted. (Cafe Hayek takes apart the claims on inequailty here.) But the broad point that the health care bill is really about income redistribution is revealing in and of itself.

Thanks Nachum.