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Does the Occupy Wall Street movement represent the 99%?

Does the Occupy Wall Street movement represent the 99%?

  • Yes, they very much represent their complaints & agenda.

    Votes: 11 14.5%
  • They represent some of their complaints & agenda, but also have their own unique/radical ideas.

    Votes: 20 26.3%
  • Not really, their ideas are more represent the complaints & goals of the poor and radicals.

    Votes: 17 22.4%
  • Not at all! They only speak for a radical fringe!!

    Votes: 28 36.8%

  • Total voters
    76
  • Poll closed .
It was my response to your statement here:
Ok then show exactly how much more the middle class is paying as the direct result of the "lower tax rates for the rich".

And as I was saying before how much taxes are the middle class paying for helping the poor? Again that is not an assertion to tax the poor, just that they fit into the equation also.
 
And I ask again...... Taxing wealthy people is going to put people to work how?

the money can be used to pay for tax-breaks for the Middle-class. Those tax-breaks lead to more spending, which leads to more jobs.

giving the rich a tax-break leads to ZERO new jobs.
 
Ok then show exactly how much more the middle class is paying as the direct result of the "lower tax rates for the rich".

The Truth-O-Meter Says:

"The "mega-rich" pay about 15 percent in taxes, while the middle class "fall into the 15 percent and 25 percent income tax brackets, and then are hit with heavy payroll taxes to boot."
PolitiFact | Warren Buffett says the super-rich pay lower tax rates than others

And as I was saying before how much taxes are the middle class paying for helping the poor? Again that is not an assertion to tax the poor, just that they fit into the equation also.

As you can see from the tax rates, the middle class pay a higher percentage of their income in taxes, of which programs for the poor (and all other programs) are paid with.
 
The Truth-O-Meter Says:

"The "mega-rich" pay about 15 percent in taxes, while the middle class "fall into the 15 percent and 25 percent income tax brackets, and then are hit with heavy payroll taxes to boot."
PolitiFact | Warren Buffett says the super-rich pay lower tax rates than others



As you can see from the tax rates, the middle class pay a higher percentage of their income in taxes, of which programs for the poor (and all other programs) are paid with.

Did you read the disclaimer at the end?

One final note: People who don't pay any income tax at all tend to have limited incomes, or they qualify for enough deductions -- think of child tax credits and mortgage interest -- that they have no income. When Buffett talks about people in the middle class who pay more taxes than he does, he's thinking of people who make much higher than average salaries.

So when it comes to Buffett's statement, there are two categories: the rich and the really rich. And the evidence tends to point to the conclusion that the really rich pay less in taxes as a percentage of income then their merely well-to-do counterparts -- if their income comes primarily from investments. Overall, we rate Buffett's statement True.
 
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Did you read the disclaimer at the end?

Yes, I did. It emphasizes my point, the mega rich, if their income comes primarily from investments (because of the Bush tax cut on Capital Gains) pays a lower tax rate than the middle class.
 
Yes, I did. It emphasizes my point, the mega rich, if their income comes primarily from investments (because of the Bush tax cut on Capital Gains) pays a lower tax rate than the middle class.
You left out the important part. That the middle class that Buffet is talking about are not really the average middle class tax payer, they are rich.
"So when it comes to Buffett's statement, there are two categories: the rich and the really rich. And the evidence tends to point to the conclusion that the really rich pay less in taxes as a percentage of income then their merely well-to-do counterparts"

In other words this source that you linked does not back up your claims and you need to find another one.
 
You left out the important part. That the middle class that Buffet is talking about are not really the average middle class tax payer, they are rich.

In other words this source that you linked does not back up your claims and you need to find another one.

This is the statement Politifact rated as true:

"The "mega-rich" pay about 15 percent in taxes, while the middle class "fall into the 15 percent and 25 percent income tax brackets, and then are hit with heavy payroll taxes to boot."
 
This is the statement Politifact rated as true:

"The "mega-rich" pay about 15 percent in taxes, while the middle class "fall into the 15 percent and 25 percent income tax brackets, and then are hit with heavy payroll taxes to boot."
You are still ignoring that its the upper middle class they are talking about. By average standards they are rich.
 
You are still ignoring that its the upper middle class they are talking about. By average standards they are rich.

Apparently you are unaware how low the "average" middle class income is. I'll give you a hint, being above average middle class means you are not the working poor.

Please note these are household incomes they are referring to below:

"The middle-middle class may be composed of those households with annual incomes of 80% to 120% of the national median household income. Persons in this income range could, in accordance to solely economic reasoning, be referred to as the American average. Such households would boast annual incomes ranging from $35,200 to $52,800, and thus be located in the middle of the income range.[13] Some of these households, while actually being in the middle and thus sometimes referred to as being middle class, cannot, however, afford the middle class lifestyle."

American middle class - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 
the money can be used to pay for tax-breaks for the Middle-class. Those tax-breaks lead to more spending, which leads to more jobs.

giving the rich a tax-break leads to ZERO new jobs.

What incentive do I have to spend more?

And how does giving the rich a tax break lead to zero new jobs?

Who do you think is going to be more likely to afford ANOTHER house with his tax break money? A guy whose tax break just gave him an extra $250 over the course of a year? Or whose tax break just gave them an extra 125K??
 
What incentive do I have to spend more?

The same incentive rich people had to spend money in the 1940s thru the 1970's when effective tax rates were much higher, to make themselves richer.

And how does giving the rich a tax break lead to zero new jobs?

See the Bush tax cuts, they just led to companies outsourcing jobs overseas.

Who do you think is going to be more likely to afford ANOTHER house with his tax break money? A guy whose tax break just gave him an extra $250 over the course of a year? Or whose tax break just gave them an extra 125K??

If that was the case, why are companies complaining of low demand for consumer products? Why haven't the tax cuts for the rich created demand for increased production????
 
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