Posted on 02/20/2003 9:31:20 AM PST by Enemy Of The State
I'm saying that the economic stimulative effects normally associated with tax cuts by the "trickle down effect" are siphoned away from our domestic economy by the trade deficit.
This can be rectified by shifting the source of federal revenue from excessive dependence on corporate and individual income taxes to imposing a flat revenue tariff on ALL imported goods. Increasing tariffs in conjunction with lowering other forms of federal taxation will redirect the trickle down effect back into our domestic economy.
If you're talking about foreign products I've bought, I paid when I bought them.
Debts must be paid, unless you think declaring National Bankruptcy is going to save your sorry butt.
If you're talking about the National Debt, I vote we cut government spending. Is my butt saved?
Your share of the National Debt is $22,178.02. (U.S. NATIONAL DEBT CLOCK)
If you're married, your wife owes the same amount.
If you have children or other dependents, they each owe the same amount as well.
Cough it up.
OK, you think the best economy would be closer to 100% manufacturing than 100% services. You also think that the trade deficit is bad.
So, what countries have the largest trade surplus? Are their economies better than ours? Are their citizens better off than ours?
Cough it up.
Take it out of my share of the federal lands. After we sell them off, I'll cough up my share of the remaining debt.
Here we go again part 2. Education manufactures an educated person from a non educated person. For example education can take someone and turn him into a scientist, a doctor, an auto repair guy etc. That is as valuable as taking cotton and making a shirt out of it. Entertainment manufactures an entertained person out of a unentertained person. This is also valuable as "all work and no play makes jack a dull boy" Just ask the military if entertainment has no value to troop moral or efficiency. Information is much like education in that it manufactures a more effective use of resources from less effective use of resources. Information helps you design and manufacture stuff. Information allows for better more effective drugs. Information may be the difference between a dosage of drug that is ineffective (too little), lethal (too much) or curative (just right). Information is also as important as manufacturing. It is probably essential to manufacturing.
So you propose we sell Alaska and ANWR to China?
How lazy and shortsighted of you, but not surprising.
No doubt the gloomsters are hyping this "record" trade deficit, but more sensible people might be able to discern that $436 Billion is only 3.6% of our annual $12 Trillion economy, or slightly less than Americans tip waitresses each year for our meals. Oooh, now there's an economy-killer! < /kidding! >
There YOU go again.
I'm not going to waste my time on your economicly irrelevant gibberish.
Happy?
How about we sell it to Americans instead? They'll do something productive with it which will create jobs and increase economic activity.
Any "trickle down effect" normally associated with tax cuts is quickly diverted overseas. American taxpayers are subsequently mired deeper in debt.
You sound like Bill Clinton. "I suppose we could cut your taxes and hope you spend it the right way.
Why don't we double our taxes and then no one will have any money to buy any foreign products?
Current 10yr Treasury rate 3.85%. My share is only costing me $854 a year in interest. I can afford $71 a month.
Even more sensible people would make the comparison to that portion of our GDP which represents our wealth creating private sector. Watering down the impact with the nonvalue-added service sector and bloated government portions of the GDP merely sidesteps the issue.
Don't know what you mean. My share is $22,178. The government is borrowing on my behalf and currently paying 3.85%. Sounds like that's the rate I'm paying.
I'm unconvinced.
3.6% of our annual GDP is lost in our annual trade deficit. OK, but how much did our economy grow in that same year? 4.7%.
Moreover, I find it difficult to claim that the service sector, such as doctor extending the productive life of a worker, is not adding even the slightest bit of value.
In fact, we could be ramping up production to world-record levels, but if said manufacturing production was all in horse-buggy-whips that no one wanted to buy, then that manufacturing would be a net drag on our economy.
So I remain unconvinced of even "service" jobs as being "valueless" or manufacturing jobs always being the panacea.
Some of each would seem to be the best course, in fact.
It's a great scam.
Shhh, the godless foreigners will hear you.
It's not. Medical services are benefits earned by the productive efforts of the worker. No work, no benefits. And the service sector collapses due to the excessive burden of its own demands.
What we have now is trickle down deficits.
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