Perhaps I should not be surprised by the current events. There is something in all of us that is always wanting more. If you watch young children at Christmas, the list of presents they want is always growing. Shopping is supposed to be our number one activity. We are creatures who are not satisfied for very long with what we have. We tend to want something more or something different after we have gotten what we want.
But when one looks around at the current situation, it does surprise me that there is this compliant that the business community is taking it on the chin so badly. There are regulations and tax codes that need to be reformed, but I am left wondering how the major businesses in this country can be complaining so much and therefore pouring so much into the Republican candidates.
CNBC and other economic sources have been reporting consistently about how so many business are “sitting on huge amounts of cash.” The quarterly reports of the major industries have more often than not been reporting record profits for the quarter. One is told that the Dow has reached highs that they have not reached in three or four years, and the NASDAQ is at a ten year high. The Financial companies which only a few years ago were in need of bail-outs are now part of the companies leading the Dow upward. The Automobile industry which, if Mitt Romney had been President, would have been allowed to go bankrupt, are now reporting great sales and returning to profitability. Many of the companies that were helped by the government have already repaid their loans.
There have been numerous reports that many of the Fortune 500 companies pay almost no taxes, some pay at the rate lower than individuals at 12.5%. The debate about how much to tax the 1% of the population that holds most of the wealth had been called “class warfare” by the Republican leadership, but the question has to be asked, how much more of the wealth of the country do they want? How many more millions do they need to make? How many of the consequences of their business do they want to avoid paying for? If the cost of doing business does not cover the environmental impact of that business, who will have to pay for it? If the corporation does not want to pay for the health care of their workers, who will have to pay for it? The worker. How will they pay for it if the business does not want to pay a living wage?
There is good evidence that economy of this country is improving despite what Senator Burr said in his most recent email. There have been 21 straight months of private sector job growth. Home sales have begun to stabilize. There are reports of new real estate development like Chinatown near the Airport. But the constant complaint is that major industries, big business and the wealth are being prevented from making all they can. How much more of our economic resources do they want concentrated in their hands?
Rick Brand, Chair
Vance County Democratic Party
Is this guy for real? Mr. Brand, Please answer a question, (which of course he won’t). What would happen if all the business owners decided to close their businesses, send their employees home, and stop paying taxes every week, month and year to the local, state and federal governments? What if they decided they were sick of being labeled as greedy and selfish for working hard and making an honest living and providing employment for others, tired of the old regulations and the new ones coming every day, tired of the huge liability insurance payments, tired of being taxed on what little profit they have left over at the end of the year at the highest rate in the WORLD, and decided it would just be easier to stay home? How would everything get paid for? Would Mr. Brand consider it to be morally justified to show up at their houses and whip them until they went back to work and produced for the “common good”? He advocates communism and is perpetuating attitudes that are false and devisive. Does he really speak for all the Democrats in Vance County as their Chair?
I beleive two of the big three automakers did go bankrupt
Mr. Brand, I learned in a business finance class in school a simple truth, businesses do not pay taxes. A well managed business passed the burden of the tax paid to the consumers of their goods or services.
I appreciate reading your views. Thank you for taking the time and effort to speak. Dangy, you might want to educate yourself instead of spewing uninformed ideas and misinformation that you heard on talk radio or unfair and unbalanced fox news.
The lates jobs report was certainly a ray of sunshine for our economy. Things do appear to be turning around. Romney said something of importance last week. He stated that he was not worried about the very poor or the very rich but is concerned with the middle class. That statement resonates with me in a very good way.
Mr. Mojo Rison, yes last week’s jobs report was a bright light is a long dark hall way. I wonder who is in Romney’s middle class. Does it include those who can bet $10,000 on a political wager. Or is his middle class just those whose income is derived exclusively from investments, no actual work.
Torn I am about this coming election. Part of my says we cannot afford to keep spending our way in to oblivion as the democrats are doing but the other part of my says we made some really bad financial mistakes during eight years of republican leadership. I do recall when Mitt made that bet, what was wrong with that? The man has made a copious amount of money, what’s wrong with that? Last time I checked so did Bill and Barack.
Mr. Brand wants to know: “but the question has to be asked, how much more of the wealth of the country do they want?”
Yes, that is indeed the question, isn’t it?
Mojo, it was not just 8 years of poor government regulation that triggered the economic collapse you have to include the Bush era tax cuts. No country in history survived unscathed cutting taxes and starting a war at the same time. This country is struggling from that bone headed political decision. Then there is the end result of trickledown economics of the Reagan era. This is the program where money moved into the hands of the minority while telling the lesser classes to keep giving.
There was nothing wrong with the bet per say, it was the dollar amount of $10,000 or one third of the average Henderson persons annual salary. You may be part of the 1% and fail to understand that the other 99% could ill afford to wager a third of their annual income.
The US recovered from the Great Depression with massive government spending. That is what a government can do that tries to help the majority instead of enriching the 1% and 1% want to bees.