Thanks for Commenting
I think you're putting the cart before the horse. Alcopops are mostly favored by underage drinkers - this is pretty clearly an attempt to decrease underage drinking, not to increase tax revenue.
Do you honestly believe this is a partisan issue or are you just trying to scare people into voting against Democrats right before election season again?
I suppose I could go the partisan route and accuse you of encouraging underage drinking but we both know that line of argument is bullshit and so is your.
I always appreciate your comments Dan.
I would like to know what your expectations are for the next four years if Obama wins. What do see happening with the major issues such as Healthcare, Taxes, Energy Independence, Abortion, the Homeless, and Global Warming? I have seen the commercials, but am curious what the average Obama really expects.
bullshit, I think, is pretending that democrats don't want to raise taxes.
Conversely chucj, I would say that "bullshit" is the GOP pretending they continually increase government spending - such as the somewhere between 1 and 3 Trillion dollar Iraq War and the upwards of 5 Trillion dollar medicare part D expansion championed by Bush and the GOP in congress - without ever increasing taxes (and in fact with each election cycle actually reducing taxes.)
I think its interesting to note that even the increased top marginal tax rate proposed by Obama is actually lower than what it was under Reagan.
Mike, I can't speak for the average Obama but as a slightly below average Obama supporter I expect:
Healthcare: Near-term - little change as feds continue to grapple with the wall street meltdown. 2011 or so - begins creation of nationally available plans for citizens to buy into as promised.
Taxes: Plan will be followed as presented in the first congressional session. Code changes will probably be made temporary just like the Bush tax cuts were.
Energy Independence: I expect this will be the Obama admin's number two priority in 2009 (after the financial crisis). We'll quickly see the large federal investment in renewables that Obama has proposed. Some new drilling will occur but with the precipitous drop in oil prices the oil companies will be much less interested in actually doing so and the issue will quietly go away. There will also hopefully be some government incentives for new nuclear plants.
Abortion: Status quo. Stevens and Ginsburg will probably retire in 2009 or 2010 and be replaced by justices with similar outlooks. Kennedy is another possible retiree. Regardless of these changes the abortion issue will stay exactly as it is now as neither party has any interest in actually changing rather than using it as a wedge issue.
Homeless: I doubt anything will happen on this in the next three years barring some big media-fanned controversy.
Global warming: Congress has already started moving towards a cap-and-trade policy and I assume it will pass fairly quickly in the first congressional session under Obama. I'm also hopeful that more proactive approaches will be taken for atmospheric carbon extraction and sequestration (algae blooms etc) in 2009 or 2010.
Dan: Thank you for taking the time to respond to my question. I hope you are right about what may happen in an Obama Administration. I especially like your comments about energy independence. Most of my friends who are Obama supporters have set a much higher bar for Obama.
On the energy investment issue, I could have sworn that was one of the items Obama indicated in a debate would have to be moved to a backburner as a result of the $700 billion bailout - soon to become a trillion dollar bailout.
"The first thing I'd do as president is sign the Freedom of Choice Act,"
Dan that is a statement of Obama's. If you read the Freedom of Choice Act you will see that the Abortion issue will be anything but 'status quo' in a Obama administration.
Mike, freedom of choice has been the de jure status quo since Roe vs Wade. The Freedom of Choice act just verifies what the Supreme Court has mostly failed to take cases on: that federal reproductive rights (as defined by Roe vs Wade and Planned Parenthood vs Casey) trump the local laws that have been enacted in attempts to chip away at those rights.
So during Bush's first term, with full Republican control of government, we get Federal spending growth (adjusted for inflation) of 20% total budget, and 25% non-defense discretionary, but, uh, taxes are *evil*. Just add to the deficit. Nothing will ever happen to global credit markets, right? If so, someone else can clean up the mess, tighten the belt, and collect the taxes for 2 administrations worth of Nixon/Ford level spending. [For comparison Clinton 1: 4.2%, 0.7%. Clinton 2: 8.1%, 14.4%]
Where is the money supposed to come from? We've tried the purest form of supply side theory for 8 years and that fraud has finally been exposed to the larger public. It's really pretty simple, if you don't like taxes don't spend the money. Borrowing it from Japan and China is far worse for our nation's long term economic health than higher taxation. But of course we know that. It's short term political health we're after.
Perhaps all those of you crying, preposterously, socialism at Obama could take a few minutes to explain the free market fundamentalism behind George Bush's enthusiastic support of not one but two record breaking Farm Bills. Anyone? Mario?
As far as New Mexico raising taxes, we're going to have to. The Federal gravy train for rural states like New Mexico and Alaska is running out of gravy and local governments are looking at a brutal bond market thanks to the international investment banking crisis. California, oddly no better off financially after two terms of Schwarzenegger despite the confident claims of Fox News during the Gray Davis recall, is a bellwether, lining up for McCain / Paulson bailout cash. Maybe they should raise taxes on wine coolers? Or the wealthiest 1%?
I tried Obama's tax calculator. I owed $40 last year. According to Obama's calculation my taxes would have been $3900 less. I wonder if I will get that as a refund. If not, his plan won't help me much.
Mike -
I believe it comes off of the amount withheld from your paychecks so, yeah, it should help.
None of my income is considered earned income.
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