Charles Sutter Hillsborough
I am writing to correct the statements that Mr. Ploskonka made in his “Time to address the nation’s debt.”
Mr. Ploskonka’s theme is sadly the false populist theme that we hear on our TV during election time. The message is of slogans not substance.
”Tax the rich,” “redistribute the wealth”: These are slogans that are espoused by Mr. Ploskonka in his article that I will dispell with the facts; just the facts.
The liberal/socialist theme is to address serious issues with feel good slogans, not ideas. The reason for this is that whenever a socialist idea is tried it fails miserably.
When we question them that raising tax rates hinders the economy, (Jimmy Carter) and give them examples of their folly they state that they “meant well,” that they “care” and that their “hearts are in the right “place.”
The American people cannot be fooled forever. Let’s address Mr. Ploskonka’s idea of redistributing the wealth by raising taxes on the successful. The following facts come from the people who collect the taxes’ the IRS.
The top 5 percent of wage earners pay 54 percent of taxes, the top 10 percent of wage earners pay 65 percent of all taxes and the top 50 percent pay approximately 96.03 percent of all taxes collected.
You, who are reading this article do the math. How much does Mr. Ploskonka want to tax the successful?
Who are the rich elites that he speaks of? The following example is what the liberal/socialist elite don’t want you to know: the rich by liberal definition is a police officer making $70,000, who is married to a nurse making $60,000.
They save to buy a house that is burdened by high property taxes. They have to buy/lease transportation and they have to save for the future and pay for higher education. This couple is very familiar to us. It is us!
They who espouse redistribution of the wealth don’t want us to stop and evaluate this issue.
Another statement that this myth buster will dissolve is tax cuts or tax increases. The presidents who cut the tax rates across the board were Presidents John F. Kennedy, Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush.
They stimulated their respective economies with revenues that paid for the military, subsequent wars and our social safety net. President Reagan funded the demise of the most murderous society in the history of mankind, the Soviet Union. He did this by stimulating the American worker with tax cuts.
President Bush is doing the same. He cut taxes and created huge cash flows into the treasury, enbling us to overcome the Clinton recession, the devastation of 9/11 and the subsequent War on Terror.
Tax cuts work every time they are tried stimulate the American worker and he will rise to the ocassion; every time.
