Originally Posted By: Salohcin Dragon
How many times has healthcare, education, or services for the poor &/or disabled been cut? Save $$ save $$ right, cut this or that, but keep giving the rich their tax cuts & don't close those loopholes!!!


Three very brief periods. First in 1971 spending for these programs was cut from ~$100 billion (adjusted for inflation to $ in 2000) to ~$97 billion. By 1975 it was up over $150 billion. Again in 1982 cut from $225 billion to ~$205 billion and back up to $225 by 1988. Finally around 1994 spending for those services dipped from ~$355 billion to ~$352 billion. As of 2000 spending for these services was over $425 billion.

As you can see, even though we've been steadily increasing spending for these programs (~$15 billion in 1945 to ~$425 billion in 2000), the people on them and the people who can benefit by telling folks their services will be cut, continue to scream about how cutting spending hurts the poor. How do they know? We've never tried it...

As for the loopholes, they are there so that the folks with money and the big businesses that employ folks don't take all their money and jobs and run. Rather than simplify the tax code the politicians just amend it to make holes for their donors to slip through. Even with those holes, I'll say this again because apparently you keep missing it, THE TOP 5% OF WAGE EARNERS PAY OVER 50% OF THIS NATION'S TAXES AND THE BOTTOM 50% OF WAGE EARNERS PAY VIRTUALLY NOTHING. Please notice that these numbers are only comprised of wage earners(for argument's sake, let's define wage earners as: anyone who gets off their ass, takes responsibility for themselves and gets a job, no matter how "beneath them" that job may be) . That doesn't include the nearly HALF of the country who is receiving some sort of benefit FROM THE OTHER HALF! What fantasy world do you live in where that is fair?

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