Quote:
Originally Posted by RichieLion
I will read it, but as of now the premise seems fatally flawed. Money has to be slowed to the rich and put in the reach of the middle class? This purports that the "economic pie" is a stagnant size and doesn't grow, and so we have to divide it up more evenly.
That's patently ludicrous on the face of it. The "pie" is not finite. The pie can grow as each person creates more and more "economic filling". We can make our own "pie" in this country. We don't have to wait on line at someone else's and hope for a sliver.
I've got to see how Mr. Reich puts it , but really?
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You're right Richie, the pie has grown over the years, pretty slowly recently but still growing. Whatever is causing it, more and more of the ever-growing pie is still finding it's way into the pockets of the wealthy, with less and less being kept by those we call the middle class. There are probably a number of reasons for that, but the Bush tax cuts appear to be a pretty big component of the shift.
So basically, if you accept the premise that a strong and vibrant middle class which earns and spends a sizable proportion of its income is key to a stable and growing economy, then government can play a role to encourage or incent that. Tax policy is probably part of the answer, but there are other things that can be done, as well.
If you accept that construction workers were a significant part of the middle class, then Obama's infrastructure re-building idea to be announced on Thursday might be something else government can do to "pump up" the middle class. Further, a solid infrastructure of transportation facilities will have a long-term positive effect on our economy, as well. (If Obama proposes further extensions of unemployment benefits or more benefits for the lower class, to me that's not the kind of thing that will have the effect of jump-starting the economy. I'd be against those kinds of government expenditures.)