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Politics : View from the Center and Left

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To: slacker711 who wrote (92034)	10/27/2008 10:25:15 AM
From: JohnM	Read Replies (2) of 541599

It isnt the facts in that quote that bother people, it is the implicit belief that redistribution is a good thing. I fail to understand this objection, Slacker. Redistribution is simply a given. That's what taxes do. The only consistent way to oppose redistribution would be to oppose all taxes but that's simply not possible. Moreover, progressive income taxes, in principle (but less and less in practice), are meant to tax the wealthy more as a percent of their earnings because, as the logic goes, they benefit more. That's been the principle of taxation in place in this country for longer than either of us has been alive. I gather you oppose that. Perhaps that's where a conversation should begin. As for Obama's point, it's not clear in either of these references to redistribution whether he means to improve opportunity or not. My guess is, given what I've seen of his politics, he means to spread opportunity. But there is much work to be done making the income tax genuinely progessive in practice as well as in principle; shoring up the shredded safety net; etc.

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