Are Pledge Signers Traitors?

If the mega wealth should be paying more, why not the poor who pay nothing? I mean if we want to be equitable about it then lets put it ALL on the table. I keep hearing the "tax the rich, tax the rich" mantra and I'm not totally opposed to that but if we want to have serious discussion then lets put everything on the table. I'm all for no new taxes. I pay too much as it is.

So, you tax the rich, now what? What do you do with the money if you don't cut your spending? That is where most people have their issues. I give you a ton of money as it is but the government has not been a good steward with the money. Until they can get their spending under control I am no in favor of increasing anyone's taxes.

Yes, I beleive anyone who signs a pledge like that, even if it has nothing to do with taxes but another subject is dangerous for our country. It's short sighted and simple minded to think you can make a decision and it will remain the right decision permanemtly. Times change, needs change, economies change. A true leader is able to compromise and think on their feet. We can all dig in and say we'll never change our minds but that is immature and counterproductive, even dangerous.

To some of you below, a lot the super wealthy people in this country would laugh at your answers. You come off as very uninformed. You owe it to yourself to read a little more about what's really going on in this country.

A.,
I agree with you.

There's only a few reasons anyone might sign that pledge:
•To be attractive to their constituents for re-election
•To preserve the "woo-hoo! free ride" that has been going on for FAR too long for wealthy Americans and corporations.

The same corporations who have NOT reinvested record profits nor created jobs for Americans, as they claim their "tax breaks" will allow them to do. Corporations are responsible for the financial backing of the elected officials that they endorse--that allow the cycle to continue.
When the wealthiest of the wealthy have attained 500x the salary of their average employee in the last 10 years, WHERE ARE THE JOBS?
That's the basis of these tax breaks for businesses. RE-INVEST and CREATE JOBS. Why isn't that happening?
Oh--that's right, top execs have hoarded the increases for grotesque personal gain. I don't know how they look at themselves in the mirror.

I'm so tired of this tax the wealthy debate. Or even tax the wealthy corporate moguls debate.

If everyone is sooooo big on making the wealthy accountable for those who aren't rich so that the wealth gap is smaller, then maybe we should also make people who benefit from federal funding like Medicaid, Medicare and welfare work for it.

Calling the pledge signers "traitors" is like saying the politicians who didn't vote for the last public education bill is a traitor b/c they don't believe in furthering the cause of education in America. Disagreement doesn't always have to mean injustice and disloyalty.

All that being said, no, I don't think the supercommitte will meet its deadline. Too many politicians who have stubbornly said they will reject any outcome and not support it no matter what. Geesh.

I am the first to say that these "sheep" who bow to Norquist in signing this pledge are putting their own self interests in trying to get voted in and keep their elected positions by signing his pledge. I know that Norquist lays low with a republican president and says nothing when all the pet projects for that administration get passed. BUT... it is WRONG to call people this name, TRAITOR, for it.

In addition, it's wrong to call the head of our Fed a traitor for using the ways we understand economically to handle the money supply. Those who call him that because they've heard it somewhere else and like the term applied to him, along with agreeing with going back to the Gold Standard, are ill-informed. They don't understand HOW THINGS WORK. No matter that it's archaic thinking to go back on the Gold Standard and let the whole world economy go to hell. It "sounds" good, so throwing that out makes saying it help them feel powerful. But it's wrong. Throwing out words like that just make the people saying it show what their true colors are - spiteful, politically motivated and ignorant of the implications of their talk.

And they don't care, because what is truly important to THEM is squashing people under their thumbs.

Dawn

In far too many cases, the mega wealthy are not wealthy because they are so ingenius. They are wealthy because they are paying below poverty wages to much of their staff, and the staff that gets above poverty raises are working long hours, taking work home, and if a person is paid a decent living wage, they are treated as if they are owned. Their vacation time does not belong to them because they are called every hour or two and emailed all day and projects sent home and even called in on vacation days. The Mega rich would not be mega rich if they paid themselves and everyone in line with their actual contributions to the company.

I believe that passive income should be taxed at a much LARGER rate. Most of the mega rich do very little of their own work or their own thinking, therefore, they should be taxed at a white collar passive income rate.

We don't need to raise taxes. We need to reduce government, reduce regulations, reduce vacation pay, reduce government pensions, and keep our government employees benefits in line with the rest of the world. My daughter pays over 500 per month for health insurance for her and her son and my husband pays over 500 per month for health insurance for he and I and one child still at home. That's nearly 1100 per month between the two of them and none of us feels as if we can afford the co-payments. I'm against any public employee paying a smaller premium for health insurance or getting smaller co-pays than the average hard working American does.

Can you even think of anything that is not taxed? We can't rent a car or stay in a hotel, fly or buy gas, buy a house or a car, buy clothes, and in many states we can't even buy food without being taxes. We are taxed on our utilities, taxed on the auto parts that we buy for our cars, taxed on gym equipment for our homes, taxed for every single piece of merchandise that we pay. Are we taxed on hospital bills? I don't even know.

We don't need MORE taxes. We need less EXPENSES.