I believe in capitalism. I really do. But I find myself questioning what shape it should take. As I watch the chasm between the haves and have nots in our nation get wider and wider, I begin to believe capitalism needs controls. When I think of a total free market society with the smallest government and least intervention, I think of the Middle Ages and feudal society. Not good. I think of our banks being left to their own and imploding in 2008. Not good. The United States had its greatest economic expansion when the tax rate on the wealthy was 91%. Our worst decade of growth has come when taxes are low and our government was focused on trying to stay out of the way. I believe the American Dream requires the haves being forced to share the fruits of that very American Dream. If we are going to ensure the American Dream to all citizens, a lot of the wealth generated by our society needs to be invested back into our society to improve infrastructure, education, job training, etc. I believe in capitalism. But I don't believe in the free market. We are greedy people. We all want our stuff. We need capitalism and the American Dream but we also need those who have achieved that American Dream to be willing to share the wealth and keep the dream alive for all of us.

 

So what should capitalism look like? How free can we let our markets be? Is totally unfettered growth best? Do low taxes help or hurt the American Dream?

I feel exactly what youre saying. What our country is experiencing is Crony Capitalism, not free market.

Capitalism is the reason we have the American dream. It's not perfect by any means. But what would you rather have? Communism, Socialism? We both know how that turns out. Do you know the main reason of the banking "crisis"? Too much government interference. The banks were forced to make bad loans they knew could not be paid back. No system is perfect. And, at least according to the Bible, the poor will be with us always. It's not the Feds job to redistribute the wealth. And we don't have a revenue problem. We have a spending problem. I can't make you grasp it,but Obama is now the main road block to our economic recovery. At some point the haves will run out of money for him to take to give to the have-nots.

I believe in capitalism. I really do. But I find myself questioning what shape it should take. As I watch the chasm between the haves and have nots in our nation get wider and wider, I begin to believe capitalism needs controls. When I think of a total free market society with the smallest government and least intervention, I think of the Middle Ages and feudal society. Not good. I think of our banks being left to their own and imploding in 2008. Not good. The United States had its greatest economic expansion when the tax rate on the wealthy was 91%. Our worst decade of growth has come when taxes are low and our government was focused on trying to stay out of the way. I believe the American Dream requires the haves being forced to share the fruits of that very American Dream. If we are going to ensure the American Dream to all citizens, a lot of the wealth generated by our society needs to be invested back into our society to improve infrastructure, education, job training, etc. I believe in capitalism. But I don't believe in the free market. We are greedy people. We all want our stuff. We need capitalism and the American Dream but we also need those who have achieved that American Dream to be willing to share the wealth and keep the dream alive for all of us.

 

So what should capitalism look like? How free can we let our markets be? Is totally unfettered growth best? Do low taxes help or hurt the American Dream?

 

Do you believe there was a direct correlation between the two? If so, do you think we would have a better economic expansion today if we increased the top rate to 92%? How about 98%? What's a couple percentage points?

Do you believe there was a direct correlation between the two? If so, do you think we would have a better economic expansion today if we increased the top rate to 92%? How about 98%? What's a couple percentage points?

 

Just pointing out facts. No, I don't want the tax rate to go back to 91%. But the argument that lowering taxes on the wealthy is good for the economy has been proven wrong. Low taxes grow the economy? ... Not true.

Capitalism is the reason we have the American dream. It's not perfect by any means. But what would you rather have? Communism, Socialism? We both know how that turns out. Do you know the main reason of the banking "crisis"? Too much government interference. The banks were forced to make bad loans they knew could not be paid back. No system is perfect. And, at least according to the Bible, the poor will be with us always. It's not the Feds job to redistribute the wealth. And we don't have a revenue problem. We have a spending problem. I can't make you grasp it,but Obama is now the main road block to our economic recovery. At some point the haves will run out of money for him to take to give to the have-nots.

 

We do have a revenue problem AND a spending problem. The banking crisis was pure greed and too much freedom in the market.

We do have a revenue problem AND a spending problem. The banking crisis was pure greed and too much freedom in the market.

 

Wrong.

 

it's just what cammando said - too much gov't interference. Not to say banks aren't "greedy" (that's why they're in business, and is, in fact, the basis of free market capitalism - everyone looking out for their own self-interest), but the gov't in the '90's came in and told the banks they had to lower the standards and give mortgage loans to those that couldn't afford it. All in the name of the American dream of owning a home.

 

VOR: I believe the American Dream requires the haves being forced to share the fruits of that very American Dream.

 

That is communism.

 

VOR: If we are going to ensure the American Dream to all citizens...

 

Why should the American Dream be ensured to all citizens? This country wasn't set up to ensure that everyone succeed - only that the opportunity to succeed exists. Remember, the Declaration of Independence states that among our "unalienable rights" are "...life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" not that everybody is guaranteed happiness.

 

I truly believe that is one of the biggest problems in our country right now: entitlement. Some people believe the existence of this country (gov't) is to ensure that they have the American Dream, which in today's society translates to a house, a car, cell phone, X-Box, etc. I'll bet to someone in Iran the American Dream would be the ability to choose their own leader and express themselves without fear of persecution/imprisonment/death.

We do have a revenue problem AND a spending problem. The banking crisis was pure greed and too much freedom in the market.

Care to explain how the banking crisis was caused by greed.. Who made the banks make all the sub-prime loans..

We do have a revenue problem AND a spending problem. The banking crisis was pure greed and too much freedom in the market.

 

High taxes do not equal increased revenue. When taxes are raised on the rich they just find ways/loopholes to protect their money from being taxed.

 

Ninety years ago -- in 1921 -- federal income tax policies reached an absurdity that many people today seem to want to repeat. Those who believe in high taxes on "the rich" got their way. The tax rate on people in the top income bracket was 73 percent in 1921. On the other hand, the rich also got their way: They didn't actually pay those taxes.

 

The number of people with taxable incomes of $300,000 a year and up -- equivalent to far more than a million dollars in today's money -- declined from more than a thousand people in 1916 to less than three hundred in 1921. Were the rich all going broke?

 

It might look that way. More than four-fifths of the total taxable income earned by people making $300,000 a year and up vanished into thin air. So did the tax revenues that the government hoped to collect with high tax rates on the top incomes.

 

What happened was no mystery to Secretary of the Treasury Andrew Mellon. He pointed out that vast amounts of money that might have been invested in the economy were instead being invested in tax-exempt securities, such as municipal bonds.

 

Rest of the article: http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2011/09/13/back_to_the_future_part_iii_111305.html

Just pointing out facts. No, I don't want the tax rate to go back to 91%. But the argument that lowering taxes on the wealthy is good for the economy has been proven wrong. Low taxes grow the economy? ... Not true.

 

You can't say it's not true, it's more a matter of finding the point where it's most effective. Go either way with the rates and it can tank the economy but not by itself. Our economy is too large and complex to say a single input will have an effect unto itself.

Just pointing out facts. No, I don't want the tax rate to go back to 91%. But the argument that lowering taxes on the wealthy is good for the economy has been proven wrong. Low taxes grow the economy? ... Not true.

Then I guess you can explain why it's a FACT that every time the capital gains tax is lowered, revenues to the treasury INCREASES...

Care to explain how the banking crisis was caused by greed.. Who made the banks make all the sub-prime loans..

 

Less regulation and lower lending standards added to the drive by financial institutions for more profits are the primary reasons for the banking crisis. The vast majority of sub prime loans were made by banks trying to make more profit. Greed growing from less regulation.

Then I guess you can explain why it's a FACT that every time the capital gains tax is lowered, revenues to the treasury INCREASES...

 

My main point is overall personal tax rates have been decreasing for the past 30 years and our deficit and debt problems have grown concurrently.

You can't say it's not true, it's more a matter of finding the point where it's most effective. Go either way with the rates and it can tank the economy but not by itself. Our economy is too large and complex to say a single input will have an effect unto itself.

 

I generally agree with you on this. But I believe we have gone too far on the low side.

Less regulation and lower lending standards added to the drive by financial institutions for more profits are the primary reasons for the banking crisis. The vast majority of sub prime loans were made by banks trying to make more profit. Greed growing from less regulation.

 

Wrong.

There is very little doubt that the underlying cause of the current credit crisis was a housing bubble. But the collapse of the bubble would not have led to a worldwide recession and credit crisis if almost 40% of all U.S. mortgages--25 million loans--were not of the low quality known as subprime or Alt-A.

 

These loans were made to borrowers with blemished credit, or involved low or no down payments, negative amortization and limited documentation of income. The loans' unprecedentedly high rates of default are what is driving down housing prices and weakening the financial system.

 

The low interest rates of the early 2000s may explain the growth of the housing bubble, but they don't explain the poor quality of these mortgages. For that we have to look to the government's distortion of the mortgage finance system through the Community Reinvestment Act and the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

 

http://www.forbes.com/2009/02/13/housing-bubble-subprime-opinions-contributors_0216_peter_wallison_edward_pinto.html