Besides being an oldies music fanatic and sports fan, I also have viewpoints on certain key political issues. Enclosed is my 2 cents[it might not even be worth that much.] I hope nobody is so offended by my opinions that they would stop listening to my radio shows or stop attending karaoke.
I love living right here in the United States. However it is not a perfect society. Of course, no place is perfect, but I have strong opinions on moving it closer to perfection.
We live in a capitalistic-socialistic society. Pure socialism would give everybody an equal amount of resources regardless of anyone's contribution to society. This does not work because many folks would take the easy way out if not motivated to work more or harder for additional rewards and comforts. Pure capitalism would result in some kind of survival of the fittest with no regards to even a minimal amount of comfort and security for those who fall on hard times. There would be no food stamps. The non working poor would simply freeze or starve to death.
Most reasonable people would feel that the line should fall somewhere in the middle of the pure capitalism and socialism extremes. I tend to be more socialistic than the current administration. To quote the song If I Were A Rich Man, There is no shame in being poor but it's no great honor either.
The nation has a budget. It does not have an infinite amount of money. In order to erase a deficit ,it can either raise taxes or cut services. Let's start with social security. It started sometime around 1935[I'm not going to bother to look up the exact date]. The goal was to provide a minimal comfort for the infirm and for senior citizens. At the time the age of 65 was picked as the retirement age. Some folks were lucky enough to make it that far but many passed away due to disease and accidents before even collecting a dime. Nowadays, with superior preventive medicine and treatment life spans have greatly increased. Therefore there are more people with more years to collect social security. Of course the system if not altered will run out of money.
To put it bluntly, I see four options. The current social security tax rate is 6.25% for employer and employee. That could be raised. As I am self employed, I feel already screwed by having to pay 12.50% to the system. Also that would mean more taxes for lower income people who pay that 6.25% of their income no matter how little they earn. I don't care for that idea.
Number 2 would be increasing the age of benefits. I get a form right now that shows ages of 62,66 or 70 as retirement ages. Perhaps the age should be slowly adjusted to 70.Many of us are living longer and healthier.
number 3--Social security was originally formed for older people who need the money. I doubt Bill Gates will be dependent on social security to keep his lifestyle. If the very rich forego some of their benefits that would leave more for the struggling seniors.
#4--This is an integral part of my tax plan. As there is a maximum of benefits one may receive from social security, there is also a maximum one must pay per year. The richer folks only pay the 6.25% on the first $87,900 of earned income per year. I would extend this 6.25% throughout the their total income. This would not only help the social security future mess but also pump more money into the general U.S. budget. I know the upper income people have worked hard for their money but surely if the lower income can afford to pay the 6.25% throughout their total income, the rich can do the same.
The upper income people should pay more taxes because they have more benefits from living in a safe secure society. I would be willing to wager that the children of upper income families are under represented in today's military. Many people besides willing to offer the ultimate sacrifice join the military for economic and educational opportunities. The rich already have both.
Continuing on taxation, besides the 6.25 % extended on incomes above $87,900,I would also tax the super rich more. I would say those making $500,000 or more per year should pay another 5 percent of their incomes over that amount. They already make enough for all necessary items. Some people never make think they make enough. Nomar Garciaparra last year turned down a 16 million dollar a year contract to play baseball. As he had an off year, he now had to settle for 8 million a year. I know he won't starve.
A couple of more things on taxation before the next topic. Capital gains taxes are less than regular income taxes. In other words if you make money in the stock market [I consider it gambling] you pay less taxes than an equivalent amount of earned working income. While many in the middle class can afford to 'invest' in stocks, it would most likely be the upper income folks who gain most by paying less taxes. Lower income folks need all the help they can get in day to day expenses and on the most part cannot afford to invest-gamble in the stock market. Surely the capital gains tax should at least equal the income tax. I also feel that while the inheritance tax might result in double taxation, it should be taxed. We fought a war for independence to get away from this so called riches by birth philosophy. If one inherits millions of dollars, they already don't have to work and can afford to pump some money back into the treasury so others may benefit.
Besides soaking the rich, I would use 'sin' taxes in order to increase money in the treasury. Legalized gambling and lotteries are already used. I'd expand these but am aware of the law of diminishing returns. I'd also legalize marijuana. It should definitely be used for medicinal purposes. From my observations, I find it no more harmful than alcohol. Of course one should not operate a motor vehicle when under its influence. It also should not be smoked indoors in public places. Put an excise tax on it and many folks can still get it cheaper and safer than from an illegal dealer. I'd also legalize prostitution. Of course only so called safe sex could be practiced and workers would be constantly health tested so they would not spread disease. Once again there would be more money going into the treasury.
By the way I would not legalize poisonous drugs such as cocaine and heroin. They are a danger to society. I don't understand why anyone in their right mind would ever try them.
Keeping with the money issue, there are some folks that have children but can't afford to care for them. In order to qualify for welfare benefits, I would have both the father and mother sterilized so they could not produce any more kids at the nations expense. I would even consider offering a lump sum of money like $2000 to both folks. The money saved in the future would be much greater. I've had some experience working with 'problem' children. They are much more likely to come from problem families in which failure to provide is one symptom. These problem children cost the society more in extra school social services. Later in life these kids are more likely to commit crimes and enter the justice system at a huge cost to society.
By the offer of money, I'd be doing the parents a favor. They can more easily provide for one child than multiple kids.
I'm not a religious person but am not entirely comfortable with late term abortions. I would like to see the morning after pill used as frequently as possible.
I am for gay marriage. With a 50% divorce rate, I don't think gay people can do any worse. At the very least they should have equal rights in regards to jobs, health care and all other societal benefits.
Now that I've increased the treasury, I'd like to see money spent on some kind of universal health care system. I would like to see more money paid to our armed forces especially in war time.
I think all work has a value to society The minimum wage should probably be $10 an hour. A hard working janitor has every right to a comfortable no-frills life as anybody else. It is a tragedy that someone can work a 40 hour week and still not meet expenses
Affirmative Action-It is a shameful that certain races of people suffered in the past in this country. However, I cannot condone affirmative action and quotas. A student who is intelligent enough to go to a state school but not an Ivy League school should go to the state school where they could be successful. Sending them to a school above their level might just be setting up an otherwise successful student up for failure. It is an insult to minority members that they might need special help getting into medical or law schools. I would offer some incentive to police, firefighters and teachers who live in the neighborhood of their precinct, station or school. In that way they would more accurately represent the neighborhood they serve.
To move to another topic-election reform. The electoral college is stupid. The whole idea of the Senate is stupid. California has a larger population than the least populous 21 states. Yet California gets 2 senators and the 21 states get 42 senators. California and other populous states are underrepresented. This under representation continues in the electoral college. While the House of Representatives fairly represents each state, tacking on the 2 senators over represents the less populous states in the electoral college. Besides that, this year Bush and Kerry spent little time in New York and Texas because they knew who would win those states. It didn't matter whether a candidate received 51 percent or 100% of the state vote.
I would abolish the electoral system and set up a popular vote system. I would encourage third and fourth party candidates. I'd run a playoff type of election. If 5 candidates ran and it took the top 3 to garner 50 percent of the vote, I'd runoff between those three. If no candidate received a majority, I'd run off the top 2.Finally someone would have a majority. This would eliminate the primary system with their overemphasis on small but key primary states like New Hampshire and Iowa.
One may notice that I have not yet commented on foreign policy.We are currently in wars with Afghanistan and Iraq.Many people did not agree with the decision to go to war in Iraq.So far,at best it may have kept terrorists and fanatics busy in Iraq and away from more attacks on the USA.We have gotten rid of Saddam Hussein who terrorized his own country.However we now have what I call a mass uncontrolled riot going on in Iraq.I will point the analogy to a prison riot.If the guards cannot control a prison,additional help is brought in until the situation is brought under control.Obviously this is not a jail but an entire nation.There are many people ready to fight until death.Some view death as some sort of reward and are willing to die and take others with them.It is difficult to fully control a large number of people with these attitudes toward life and death.President Bush no longer wants to use the term stay the course.We really need to drastically change the course.
One lesson we should have learned from the Vietnam War is that if we are willing to enter into a war, we need to win it.It is quite possible that in order to gain control of Iraq and push it toward a peaceful democracy,we need to double the number of troops.I do not support a draft as you get a huge crop of unmotivated people who are there against their wishes.It is not fair.By the luck of a number millions of young Americans were able to fully enjoy being part of the Woodstock peace-love generation while many of their peers were suffering and risking their lives in the jungles of Vietnam.
Pat Tillman was a football player who gave up a high paying job to fight and unfortunately die for his country.There are few people like him.Besides risking death,there is also the possibility of permanent physical or psychological injury.On top of that, family dynamics are more than subject to change when someone is gone for a long period of time.The only way we get anybody to enlist is via the almighty dollar.There are lower income people who are motivated by the $30,000 a year of mostly saved money and educational opportunities provided by the armed forces.In order to arouse more interest in the armed forces, it is quite possible that we need to raise the starting military salary to maybe $50,000 a year.One would still have congressmen who made the decision to go to war earning three times the amount of those fighting to protect our country.
Unlike the present irresponsible administration and congress,I would not increase the deficit in order to achieve this.If one reads back,one can see I've already mentioned ways to help the nation raise money. For me one obvious way is through a nationwide gas tax.I know that 99 percent of the public are too stupid to agree with me.Over the summer we were paying as much as $3.49 for a gallon of gas.There was a decline in gas consumption but most people dealt with it.I use my car to go everywhere and still only use a tank[12 gallons of gas]a week.Sure I'd rather pay $30 a week instead of $40 a week but it doesn't make or break me.When one buys a house or rents an apartment a consideration should be made to proximity to work.When one buys a car,gas mileage should be a consideration.Besides I'm only considering a 25 cents a gallon gas tax.Gas that cost $2.50 at this writing would now cost $2.75.One is still saving 75 cents off the summer high prices.Remember we are paying for the defense of our nation.Besides any decrease in consumption of gas means a cleaner environment as well as less dependence on oil from foreign sources.Maybe it would motivate us to more greatly develop alternative energy.
I'm all for lotteries and gambling.In Las Vegas sports gambling is legaL.There is also gambling on the internet in these regards.The money is usually sent to some South or Central American country.Wouldn't we rather have our own country benefit from this illegal but relatively unharmful activity?
Very few sons and daughters of rich families go to fight in Iraq.The families may have money to send their children in expensive cars to expensive private colleges.Surely they could pay more of their earned money into taxes paying for lower income kids military training and salaries.
Another way to raise money is a one percent national sales tax.I do have a concern that some lower income folks might be affected by this.Perhaps there could be no tax on bare necessities.By the way, a $20 sneaker is a bare necessity.A $100 sneaker is a luxury.
One more tax I can think of is a luxury tax.If someone can afford to buy a $40,000 car or boat,they can surely afford to pay some kind of luxury tax.I might also consider a luxury tax on second homes and income property.
These are all sacrifices we need to make in order to win this war.If this is too much for our government to ask,we should have thought of that before entering Iraq.
After the WMD fiasco, our goal in Iraq became setting up a free democratic government which would be the envy of people economically and physically suffering in countries like Iran and North Korea.This is a laudable goal.However if this goal is deemed not important enough for the government and citizens of our country to make the necessary sacrifices to ensure total victory,we need to remove our troops from the situation as soon as possible.
Our brave soldiers can't be out their risking their lives while our most well to do citizens take Caribbean cruises,count stock market gains, and in general reap every every possible comfort from living in our free democratic country. In the future,when we go to war,the government and each non-fighting citizen must be prepared to to make the necessary economical sacrifices to ensure victory.
2009
Though I have total respect and admiration for John McCain's sacrifices for his country, I could not bring myself to vote for him.In 2007, I wrote him a letter about my concerns about the economy.The reply told me that President Bush was handling everything correctly.Since then, millions of people have lost jobs, their house or money in their retirement investments.
Billions of dollars of taxpayers money, were given to the failed banks so they could remain solvent.I'm not a banking industry expert but by common sense alone, I don't understand why every non-performing bank had to be saved.The successful banks should stay, banks could merge and the truly loser banks should be allowed top go under.Of course suffering customers should be saved.We have CEOs who paid themselves and other high ranking corporate officials millions of dollars in bonuses.Maybe, in order to be saved these so called corporate leaders should pay back a large percentage of their bonuses retroactively.I've heard reports of some companies wasting more taxpayer money on airplanes, carpeting and upgrading bathrooms.There should also be a monitoring of all bank salaries.I cannot understand why a bank worker on taxpayer money should earn more than the U.S. president[$400,000 a year]Since the government gave out money, they should have total access to how the money is being spent.If one wants to remain independent, they shouldn't take government money.
I own a house and had a fixed rate mortgage as I feared variable rates.Maybe there should only be fixed rates.The variable rates led to some folks suddenly owing more than they could afford.
Of course, I'm sympathetic to anyone having trouble meeting payments.I'm also sympathetic to all the families with no hope of ever owning a house.They pay for apartments which only benefit the owner's equity.There is no tax break for apartment dwellers.Luckily there is social service help for the truly needy.
Another industry which has gone downhill is the U. S. auto industry.Besides too many overpaid corporate executives, the regular workers were earning very good salaries with health benefits and pensions.This makes the break even point of the price of a car too high to compete with foreign automakers.Toyota has many plants in the U.S. and pays workers a fair wage, but considerably less.The automakers asked for a lot less money than the banks but should still be held accountable.
To expand on that previous gas tax idea, I'm now paying less than half what I paid for gas about 9 months ago and loving it.However this is just an OPEC trick to discourage us from moving toward smaller cars and less driving.There is only a finite amount of oil regularly available and mostly our enemies have it.It still makes sense to conserve on gas and develop alternative energy.The price of oil will go up.That is a fact.Oil has widely fluctuated over the past 35 years but in the long run it has moved way up.At this stage the price of gas should never below $3.If we have to tax it to reach that point, so be it.The tax could be added on at the rate of a dime a month so as not to have any shock effect.I would not be surprised to see gas prices above $3 this summer without the tax.
We are in a deep recession and maybe we need to get the economy straightened out.Eventually we need to reduce the deficit.My tax ideas make perfect sense in this effect.
I am hopeful that president Obama could bring the necessary changes.He has a good way of expressing disagreement without alienating those who disagree with him.This should help in both foreign and domestic policy.
I did not vote for Obama in both the primaries and general election because he was black.I voted for him because I thought he could do the best job.Of course an added benefit is the hope he brings to inner city folks that anything is possible if one works hard enough.I keep hoping that racism is dead.However a recent encounter at a karaoke gig convinced me that not everyone is on board.The N word was mixed in with the word inaguration by this genius.I wasn't surprised.The same person made an anti-semetic slur the week before.
On another topic, there has been discussion of people selling organs such as kidneys for financial profit to folks that need them.First of all it should be assumed that upon death , everyone would willingly donate any body part in order to keep someone else alive.Only those not willing to donate should be signing cards.Second of all, if we need more live donors, why not pay them?I see nothing unethical in this.There is a small risk in every operation.In addition, the donation takes time.If it saves someone elses life, why not pay?
2011---------------addendum to previous postings
Cut the deficit to 0.
Here is my social security plan.Over time, the money saved by this alone would eliminate the deficit.
The retirement age for those born in 1945 is 66.They can retire in 2011 with full benefits.I would raise the retirement age two months for ever year that one is under 66.For example the retirement age for those born in 1946 would be 66 years, 2 months.For those born in 1947 , it would be 66-4
The age would gradually increase to 67 for those born in 1951.It would be 68 for those born in 1957.
Born in 1963--the age would be 69.1969-70, 1975-71, 1981-72, 1987-73, 1993-74, 1999-75.
I would keep 75 as the retirement age after that.We can always make future adjustments if necessary.I believe this to be a fair system, as it penalizes those closest to retirement the least.I realize that this will upset many people, but we can't continually have people retiring at 65 and living to 90 on the government dollar.It is simply, over the long run, unaffordable.
Of course social security taxes should be paid throughout income and not stopped after the first $108,000.That would give us $125B a year in tax revenue.
A gas tax, though it upsets just about everybody, is a good idea.I would increase it a dime a gallon a year starting in 2012 until we get to a dollar a gallon in 2021.This will pump approximately 7.5 billion dollars into the economy in 2012, 75 billion dollars a year in 2021 and after.Gas is our ultimate sin.We are dependent on our enemies for oil.It's almost as if they are our enemies because they could afford to be our enemies.We are fighting wars at least indirectly due to this need for oil.A gas tax should reduce consumption as well as encourage development of alternative energy.
I'm also for inheritance taxes of some kind for very rich heirs.I don't get it.A child who did not work for their parents money gets money for nothing.
One the more conservative side, though National Public Radio and PBS offer some fine programming, I don't think it is the government's responsibility to pump any money into them.There are plenty of radio and TV stations.If there is money to be made, the programming will exist.
I hate the idea of abortions after a certain amount of time[3 months].I'm a big fan of morning after pills.
I take a pill because of high cholesterol.It is a generic that I pay $10 every three months for at Walmart.A couple of years ago, I needed to take something for extreme dental pain.I was originally prescribed something not on the Walmart list that would have cost me $75.I immediately had Walmart fax the generic list to my doctor who then picked a generic that would help me.If someone is a government worker and is covered for all this, they would not care if $5 or $75 is spent on medicine.They are only paying a small percentage anyway.My point is if a generic can do the job almost as well, why should everyone's tax money be spent on the more expensive drug.
As said before extra revenue can easily be created by legalizing marijuana[not harder drugs].I hate to see police time wasted on marijuana dealers.I say tax it and decrease the deficit.
The cost of health care has skyrocketed.I have some friends in the local police force.They can retire after 25 years with pension and full 'cadillac' health benefits.It is no wonder that cities and towns are running out of money.It is the taxpayer that funds retirement funds and health benefits.Many are paying taxes to benefit others and still have to fit the bill for their own retirement and health care.I hope we can get government workers to pay more money into their own health care and pensions. We cannot afford to offer these benefits for free for future workers.
Now I see the post office cannot sustain current practices. Once again, another organization that is reactive instead of proactive. The post office, like the auto industry and state and federal governments offers a lucrative pension as well as good health benefits. Of course, as people retire and live longer, they are forced to pay for retired workers as well as current workers. Maybe the price of mail should be 75 cents. I don't know. E-mail, facebook, texting and whatever have replaced a good deal of mail.Who but a dedicated Netflix watcher would miss mail on Saturday.Maybe an additional weekday of no mail could be added as well.There is simply less demand for the service.
State and federal congressmen get what I consider to be very good salaries[ above or below $100,000 a year]for part time work.Of course, I'd like to see salary cuts. These folks also get per diem housing and food whenever they are in session out of town. I don't care what a private business does with their extra money, but this sum of money[close to $200 a day] comes out of our tax money. I can sort of understand need for housing but don't think we should pay for anything above a Motel 6. If that's not good enough, let the congressmen pay the difference out of their own pocket. With the amount of money they receive for expenses, they can eat at expensive restaurants on taxpayer money. I think at $80,000-$150,000 a year, they can afford to pay for their own meals. Surely a buffet, pizza, subs are easily affordable for them. That's what some of us taxpayers call fine dining.We can save a decent chunk of change off the deficit if these folks would just pay for their own meals. I'd like to see them pay for their own 'cadillac' health insurance as well. This 'Obamacare' may not be affordable. If that's the case, why are we paying for these fat cats health insurance and pensions. Maybe there should be only one term served. That way, maybe some of these folks would spend more time dealing with issues and less time trying to get re-elected. There are certainly plenty of people who would love to get a huge chunk of change for dealing with the nation's problems. I bet it's a lot easier work than landscaping, retail and any other low paying job.
As far as Obamacare goes, I think it should only deal with 'catastrophic' care. That is health care with a very high deductable. Someone like me can afford to pay for doctor visits and drugs at Wal-Mart[Target has the $4 drug plan as well]but am afraid if I'm stuck in a hospital for a long period of time, I could lose my house. The reason they are requiring health care for everybody is that in case of catastrophe, they will be cared for. It is simply not fair to everyone else to for those to wait for the catastrophe to happen , be treated and then not pay for the care as it is unaffordable without insurance. The lower income people are subsidized for health care already.
I'm a spoiled Bronx kid who was always able to find enough kids to play baseball, football, basketball or soccer with.My parents didn't have to watch me play and drive me all over the place just so I could play. Now I see these travel soccer leagues and the like, in which kids are travelling to, practicing and playing soccer or whatever three or more hours a day. Sports are great but a little variance in the program may be warranted. Sometimes kids are so busy playing soccer, they can't have dinner until 8PM .Who knows if their homework isn't a complete rush job.The same goes for excessive cheerleading and orchestra. A little moderation please.We can't function as just a nation of athletes and musicians.
Education-This ought to upset lots of people. Basic education is learned by age 12. If at age 12 one still does not know their times tables, let's face it, they will always struggle with mathematics. There is no way, they could do geometry or algebra. These are the kids that spend their high school years smoking pot with the janitors if they even bother to attend. Of course, they are promoted. Nobody wants to keep dealing with them. The same goes with those who can't read or write a basic composition. They are not going to understand Shakespear. I would have these people concentrating on vocational training at an earlier age. One of my neighbors admits to never reading a book in his whole adult life. But , given the right tools he could build an entire house by himself. If someone excels and loves science, they should be greatly encouraged. Maybe, more science, less Shakespear.We need scientists in order to compete with other countries.By age 12, many kids have a good idea of what is their hated subjects. If one likes to write, why even bother with trigonometry. I was very good in math and got a 95 on the NYS regents exam in Trigonometry. However I remember none of it and don't know anybody who requires that knowledge. It is too bad that something more practical like car maintenance wasn't taught in it's place.
College cost a lot of money. There are many subjects and even entire majors taught in college that could be learned just as easily over the internet. I majored in accounting. The first class was with 500 students in a lecture center. If I had spent the time going to class, just reading the book, I would have used my time more wisely.In fact there was not one accounting clas, I took that was anymore than trying to learn out of an accounting book. I would propose letting someone study on the internet and then take the required tests. One can save money by eliminating unneccessary professors One would present proper ID in order to take these tests. As an aside, my friend Bucky once had my friend Tim take a test with him in a lecture center. Originally Bucky was just going to cheat off him. Then Bucky told Tim to just write his name. Bucky's last name was Buchanan which Tim spelled wrong. Bucky sweated out that C- that Tim earned him. Whoever marked the paper did not notice the mis-spelling.What I'm explaining by this anecdote is that this stuff was happening years ago and most likely still happening.The room where the tests are taken should be watched more carefully. But for many subjects, a professor is not even needed. I had a marketing class, in which the professor would assign different members of the class to teach different chapters of the book. This professor was not all that healthy.At the end of one class, he had fallen asleep. I feared a lot worse. Fortunately he awakened when the entire class made excessive noise in order to awaken him. Think of all the money that could be saved in certain academic areas if students taught themselves on the internet. That way, school can be affordable to more people.
Immigration-yes we are a nation full of immigrants but we cannot continuosly let everyone that wants to come in. We have enough unemployed people who are willing to work at the extremely low minimum wage. Illegal workers should not be allowed. If they are willing to live 20 to a room and earning $3 an hour,they are just cutting out the American work force. I'd make every effort to keep the illegals out. We are very fortunate. Due possibly to our entertainment industry[sports, movies etc.]many people from other countries want to come here. It appears to be a fun place.Many go to college and grad school, then go back to their native countries. These are the people we want to stay. They should be encouraged in every way to stay. If we can't have enough native scientists , then why not encourage the best and the brightest from other countries to live here. We want them. What we don't want is a bunch of un-educated people who are too lazy to even learn the language which by the way is English.
Maybe illegal immigrants should pay a fairly steep citizen charge in order to stay. Maybe , if physically up to it, they should serve in the military. I would seal the borders as best we could. We don't need anymore people draining our social services resources and taking away American jobs.
