***Official Political Discussion Thread***

[EddieDoyers]

Wells Fargo and Fifth Third Bank raiding minimum wages to $15/hr on passage of the tax bill, and AT&T giving a $1000 bonus to all employees. Anyone else feel like these companies are doing this for the PR?

Ironically Wells Fargo cut some employees this year at their headquarters and their call center

Even the CEO of Wells Fargo hinted at what's going to happen next year

"Is it our goal to increase return to our shareholders and do we have an excess amount of capital? The answer to both is, yes," Sloan said. "So our expectation should be that we will continue to increase our dividend and our share buybacks next year and the year after that and the year after that."

So yeah, all just PR really to front for their employee cutting and profit margin increasing tactics

 

[EddieDoyers]

Those 1000 bonus gonna get taxed hard

AT&T been cutting jobs too for the past 10 years
So hooray to those that survived

 

[Belgium]

The deficit is concerning. We have already established that other cuts will need to be made to pay for this. No secret there. And people can donate to these orgs and foundations directly. That's what you keep avoiding.

How about not passing a tax cut bill that blows a gaping hole in the deficit. When have these trickle-down economics ever resulted in sustained economic growth to shave off the debt rather than a short term boost that blows giant holes in the deficit? It's good for my bottom line for the time being as I have significant investments in the US but I don't see the tax cut as a net positive at all.
Our minister of finance is also a trickle-down economics supporter, staunch obstructionist for pro-consumer financial regulations in EU parliament and a corporate stooge. We're likely headed down the same road.
Even our carat tax on our diamond sector was literally written by the Antwerp diamond lobby and passed by our finance minister. It is a tax hike and it has actually tripled tax revenue from the diamond sector but the diamond lobby celebrated anyway because they now pay slightly more but can do whatever they want under the impression that our government really stood up to them for once. Which is just not the case with the entire legislation being written by them word for word. They threaten to leave the country, evade taxes, get caught up in financial scandal after scandal and the stooges just fulfill their demands time and again. Our economy isn't even doing bad, just kind of average. It could use a boost but certainly not the trickle-down method that has continually screwed long-term goals. Our government's proposal doesn't look like it will pass this year at least.

 

[the qbz]

AT&T been cutting jobs too for the past 10 years
So hooray to those that survived

Survival bonus lol

 

[RustyShackleford]

I trust that you know what's best for your money. I hope that you are able to help the people that need it.

 

[elpablo21]

This **** is wild

 

[RustyShackleford]

Wells Fargo and Fifth Third Bank raiding minimum wages to $15/hr on passage of the tax bill, and AT&T giving a $1000 bonus to all employees. Anyone else feel like these companies are doing this for the PR?

The same Wells Fargo that pressured workers to commit tons of fraud on millions of people and that have been rewarded with bigger profits, the potential destruction of the agency that caught them, and looser banking regulations and enforcement.

Well isn't that nice of them.

Some CEOs are gonna try to get Trump some PR wins. This is Carrier 2.0

 

[EddieDoyers]

The same Wells Fargo that pressured workers to commit tons of fraud on millions of people and that have been rewarded with bigger profits, the potential destruction of the agency that caught them, and looser banking regulations and enforcement.

Well isn't that nice of them.

Some CEOs are gonna try to get Trump some PR wins. This is Carrier 2.0

All white collar companies too.

Blue collar workers get nothing. WOW SMH YIKES

 

[RustyShackleford]

This **** is wild

deuce king

 

[dwalk31]

The same Wells Fargo that pressured workers to commit tons of fraud on millions of people and that have been rewarded with bigger profits, the potential destruction of the agency that caught them, and looser banking regulations and enforcement.

Well isn't that nice of them.

Some CEOs are gonna try to get Trump some PR wins. This is Carrier 2.0

But I thought companies wouldn't do it unless they were incentivized or compelled.

 

[dwalk31]

How about not passing a tax cut bill that blows a gaping hole in the deficit. When have these trickle-down economics ever resulted in sustained economic growth to shave off the debt rather than a short term boost that blows giant holes in the deficit? It's good for my bottom line for the time being as I have significant investments in the US but I don't see the tax cut as a net positive at all.
Our minister of finance is also a trickle-down economics supporter, staunch obstructionist for pro-consumer financial regulations in EU parliament and a corporate stooge. We're likely headed down the same road.
Even our carat tax on our diamond sector was literally written by the Antwerp diamond lobby and passed by our finance minister. It is a tax hike and it has actually tripled tax revenue from the diamond sector but the diamond lobby celebrated anyway because they now pay slightly more but can do whatever they want under the impression that our government really stood up to them for once. Which is just not the case with the entire legislation being written by them word for word. They threaten to leave the country, evade taxes, get caught up in financial scandal after scandal and the stooges just fulfill their demands time and again. Our economy isn't even doing bad, just kind of average. It could use a boost but certainly not the trickle-down method that has continually screwed long-term goals. Our government's proposal doesn't look like it will pass this year at least.

We will see

 

[Belgium]

deuce king

I would assume that would be discounted here based on the double marking in the House Of Rep. section and the unclear intent of the Gov. marking.

 

[RustyShackleford]

But I thought companies wouldn't do it unless they were incentivized or compelled.

Stop being obtuse for the sake of being troll.

You clearly didn't understand my argument or you are using an outlier to deflect. Speaking on a Macro level, because we are debating macroeconomics, how many business exist in the economy. How how many would be needed to move the average. Hmmmm

Either way, I'm done discussing the topic with someone who refuses to educate himself, or is simply arguing in bad faith.

Because if I explain further, you will simply deflect.

 

[elpablo21]

I would assume that would be discounted here based on the double marking in the House Of Rep. section and the unclear intent of the Gov. marking.

ballot was counted, tie ball game now

 

[Belgium]

We will see

May take a while though. Look at the effect Reagan's tax cuts had. There was a big boost in growth but it didn't pay for itself, significantly reduced federal revenue and blew up the deficit.
Congress had to raise taxes back up, as did Bush Sr.
Bill Clinton then signed another tax increase in 1993. Bush Jr. then signed more tax cuts on top of costly wars and an impending financial crisis.

 

[biggie62]

May take a while though. Look at the effect Reagan's tax cuts had. There was a big boost in growth but it didn't pay for itself, significantly reduced federal revenue and blew up the deficit.
Congress had to raise taxes back up, as did Bush Sr.
Bill Clinton then signed another tax increase in 1993. Bush Jr. then signed more tax cuts on top of costly wars and an impending financial crisis.

Deficits don’t matter when republicans are in charge. Don’t you understand that yet?

 

[RustyShackleford]

May take a while though. Look at the effect Reagan's tax cuts had. There was a big boost in growth but it didn't pay for itself, significantly reduced federal revenue and blew up the deficit.
Congress had to raise taxes back up, as did Bush Sr.
Bill Clinton then signed another tax increase in 1993. Bush Jr. then signed more tax cuts on top of costly wars and an impending financial crisis.

Reagan's cuts are not even the cause of the "boom". They mainly caused a **** ton in revenue.

Other factors were at play in the 1980s. He got lucky at the right time and it caused Americans to forever correlate robust economic growth with bad policy

 

[gry60]

Most americans are getting a tax cut. You think this is bad. That is the bottom line.

During the last recession, how many people's savings got wiped away? We're talking lifetime here. I worked with a guy who had to push back his retirement three years because his wife lost at least half of her investments that were going to go towards retirement; if it weren't for their other assets, that guy would have worked way into his 70s.

Most Americans don't have the ability to live off investments. Hell, 45% of private sector workers have 401k accounts. When times get lean and individuals can no longer spend and companies sell less and lay off people as a result, guess who keep things from going full depression: a well funded government. It retrains people, keep industries working, protect folks from living on the street, and provide farmer subsidies to keep food prices affordable. A tax cut in affluent times is going to make less affluent times more painful for all of us. Yes, all of us. Because those who won't be able to eat will eventually come for yours, and it will be a whole lot of them vs a few of you.

Back in the middle ages, wise kings (government) built granaries and saved a portion of the serfs grain production during times of great harvest (taxes) because they knew that the harvest wasn't always great. The foolish ones went around and made corn rain on their subjects, and the crazy ones took the grain from their subjects to feed the nobility. Your argument has been debunked for centuries.

 

[RustyShackleford]

During the last recession, how many people's savings got wiped away? We're talking lifetime here. I worked with a guy who had to push back his retirement three years because his wife lost at least half of her investments that were going to go towards retirement; if it weren't for their other assets, that guy would have worked way into his 70s.

Most Americans don't have the ability to live off investments. Hell, 45% of private sector workers have 401k accounts. When times get lean and individuals can no longer spend and companies sell less and lay off people as a result, guess who keep things from going full depression: a well funded government. It retrains people, keep industries working, protect folks from living on the street, and provide farmer subsidies to keep food prices affordable. A tax cut in affluent times is going to make less affluent times more painful for all of us. Yes, all of us. Because those who won't be able to eat will eventually come for yours, and it will be a whole lot of them vs a few of you.

Back in the middle ages, wise kings (government) built granaries and saved a portion of the serfs grain production during times of great harvest (taxes) because they knew that the harvest wasn't always great. The foolish ones went around and made corn rain on their subjects, and the crazy ones took the grain from their subjects to feed the nobility. Your argument has been debunked for centuries.

If people cared so much about the King's policies, they could have donated some grain to peasants in need.

 

[dacomeup]

Ninja finally bows out and y'all allow Atticus Finch to replace him.

 

[Belgium]

Also, guess who's going to be screwed by the upcoming push for entitlement reform. I'm pretty sure they don't mean corporate welfare with those terms.
It's going to be the common American that'll have to front the bill for the deficit increase. Even with dynamic scoring taken into account pretty much every study including the CBO predicts a massive increase in the deficit. And modern history isn't exactly on the side of "it'll pay for itself", see Reagan and Bush.
And remember, the individual cuts expire in 10 years unless re-approved, whereas the corporate tax cuts are permanent.

 

[RustyShackleford]

Ninja finally bows out and y'all allow Atticus Finch to replace him.

"To Kill a Mockingbird" Atticus Finch or "Go Set a Watchman" Atticus Finch.

 

[EddieDoyers]

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/12/17/upshot/tax-calculator.html

For those interested in estimating your future tax return

Taking the standard deduction I get around $500-760 cut in my bracket
Itemized I get $230-$550 cut in my bracket

Looks like I will have to take the standard deduction next year lol

 

[deuce king]

deuce king

Seeing and hearing things like this drive the point home even further on how EVERY vote truly does count and how important it is to vote. Both registration and voter participation should go up for the midterm in 2018 and for the presidential in 2020. I already know of one person in particular that resides in Howard County Maryland that I can and WILL count on to fulfill that order.

 

[the qbz]

During the reagan era the taxing drove the crack epidemic



Cracknis back babay

Millenial scarface