You Think Your Taxes Are High?

What's really shocking is that the U.S. isn't too far behind Europe in terms of top marginal tax-rates. From Kudlow's Money Politics:

In France the top combined marginal tax-rate is 55.7 percent, kicking in at a dollar comparable $87k. In Germany the top rate is 47.5 percent, kicking in at $57k. In the U.S. it is 41.6 percent, kicking in at $327k.

Read the whole post here about the sorry state of France's and Germany's economy.

CEO Compensation

Stories like this routinely gloss over that the vast majority of CEO compensation is largely tied to equity based performance. If the stock doesn't go up, you don't get paid. Most CEO's are in exactly the same boat as a newer less experienced employee who gets stock matching in his 401-k or stock options or restricted stock. The dollar levels are widely different based on experience, but I don't think anyone is really advocating equal pay for new hires versus someone with 40 years experience on the job. Or are they?

Do Tax Rate Cuts Really Work ??

New revision of economic growth:

The country's economic performance in the opening quarter of 2005 was better than first thought, logging a solid 3.5 percent annual growth rate in a new sign of a strong springtime business expansion.

The latest reading on gross domestic product, released by the Commerce Department on Thursday, was an upgrade from the 3.1 percent pace initially estimated for the January-to-March quarter.
"The 3.5 percent pace is really a safe and solid pace for the economy to grow. By that I mean, it is not so fast that you can have an inflationary accident and not too slow to create new jobs," said Stuart Hoffman, chief economist at PNC Financial Services Group. "It is right on the economy's speed limit."

Look for Paul Krugmans rebuttal on how this economic growth is really bad for the country shortly.

It's Not a Revenue Problem ....

So do tax RATE cuts really stimulate the economy and generate substantially more tax REVENUES? From OpinionJournal.com:

So we thought our readers might like to know that so far this year federal tax revenues are booming. Overall, in the first seven months of Fiscal Year 2005 through April 30, they climbed by $146 billion to a total of $1.216 trillion. That's an increase of 13.6% over a year earlier, some four or five times the inflation rate, and the kind of raise that most American families can only dream about. Income tax receipts are driving this windfall, with individual revenues up $66 billion, or 16%, to $547 billion. Corporate income taxes are rolling in even faster, tsunami-like in fact, rising 48% to $134 billion.

Read the whole article here.

How Bad is the L.A. Times? Part 1

Read this completely non-sensical article by business columnist Michael Hiltzik.
I can't imagine a more backwards, illogical commentary on employee retirement security.
Because of the current pension issues in corporate America, that's why we NEED private accounts and not solely rely on corporate or government pensions.
United employees who invested in private accounts (401-Ks, etc) still have the money they put in it for retirement, their pension is what is at risk now.
Enron employees still have their 401-Ks mostly intact, it's their pension they lost in the bankruptcy.
If employees want real retirement security, they need to diversify AWAY from government and corporate obligations and take more personal responsibility for their future by investing in private accounts that they can maintain and pass onto heirs if necessary. As opposed to putting their retirement at great risk due to potential corporate or government malfeasance.

Is Government Really That Wasteful? Part 1

This riduculous example of abuse of taxpayer dollars should be easy to top, but at least it's a starting point.

Out of Control Spending?

Fans of big government and higher taxes like to unequivocally state that after Proposition 13 passed in the mid-1970's in California which restricted large increases in property taxes - county and state budgets have been starved for revenue sources.
However the numbers are this:
In the 1975-76 fiscal year (when Prop 13 was passed), Los Angeles County revenues sources were about $3 billion and today they are $18 billion, a 500% increase - yet the population of the County has only grown from 7.2 million to 9.8 million a 35% increase.
In the 1975-76 fiscal year, State of California revenues sources were about $9 billion and today they are $86 billion, an 855% increase - yet the population of the State has only grown from 22 million to about 35.8 million, a 62% increase.
Once again, it's not a Revenue problem.

Best article on Minutemen yet

Why isn't this article published everywhere?