This commentary does not discuss GINI indexes, Quantitative easing, interest rate indexes, or the Laffer curve.
It makes this simple point:
Three (of the) ways that inequality reduces the prosperity of the American people:
1. The direct issue that the wealthy are undertaxed. That money could reduce inequality, going to the rest of America by lowering their taxes and/or invested in them.
Let us now praise famous men, and our fathers that begat us. The Lord hath wrought great glory by them through his great power from the beginning. Such as did bear rule in their kingdoms, men renowned for their power, giving counsel by their understanding, and declaring prophecies.
- Ecclesiasticus 44:1-4
Remember the days after September 11, 2001; where the admins at dkos warned us to never question, "The Official Story"?
Please excuse the source but there is an actual video on the Crooks & Liars website of this jackass actually saying the following:
Trump said, " Nick Mulvaney is here. And Nick is in charge of a thing called "budget."
He continued, "Now I hate to tell you Puerto Rico, but you’re throwing our budget a little out of whack, because we’ve spent a lot of money on Puerto Rico, and that’s fine, we’ve saved a lot of lives.”
This will be a really short Essay, but I think it's a question which needs to be answered.
Has anyone else around here noticed that every time the clause "The State is Indivisible" or equivalent appears in any country's Constitution, that country has a chunk of its land and people who emphatically do NOT want to be part of it?
An object lesson in the differing world views of large segments of society is offered in the responses to former San Francisco 49er quarterback Colin Kaepernick. Exercising considerable bravery, CK knelt during the playing of the national anthem at the beginning of a football game. He is intelligent and certainly was aware of the possible repercussions of this act, which, in fact, were realized.
We have a general idea of support for 'self-determination'. See the colonies declaring independence from Britain in 1776.
Then it gets fuzzier. We left it pretty ambiguous after that, until the south tried to exercise a
right to secede in 1861, and we said no, you don't have that right.
So if there is any principle around the issue, it seems to suggest that people who don't have the power of democracy have a right to secede, but people who have democracy, don't.
The climate disasters are coming, and there probably won't be a lot of traction for the next four years because the Democrats all got behind Clinton (who wasn't going to do anything besides propose an overelaborated and useless sop to the fossil fuel companies anyway).
The GOP has a Trump/Puerto Rico problem, and it will cost them plenty in coming elections.
