2 scary numbers.

[dixiegrrrrl]

Nearly half of all Americans live in a household in which someone receives government benefits, more than at any time in history.

and

45 % of American households not paying federal income taxes.

according to the Tax Policy Center, a nonpartisan research organization.

(A little more than half don't earn enough to be taxed; the rest take so many credits and deductions they don't owe anything. Most still get hit with Medicare and Social Security payroll taxes, but 13% of all U.S. households pay neither federal income nor payroll taxes.)


from the WSJ...

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703791804575439732358241708.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_LEFTWhatsNewsCollection

[underpants]

1. 47% got tax rebates - that doesn't mean they didn't pay taxes

75% of the country pays more in Soc.Sec. and payroll tax than they do in income tax

[valerief]

2. And still there's enough toss trillions at defense and give Richy Rich a tax cut!

I wonder how many of those not paying are offshoring their money.

[FirstLight]

3. wow

that's STILL a staggering statictic...

how can we NOT tax the rich more? they are holding all the cards while we wait for jobs that aren't coming back

:mad:

[SoCalNative]

4. Government benefits

can also mean Social Security for retirement or a government pension.

[Earth_First]

5. +1

...and that number will only rise.

[dixiegrrrrl]

7. True, dat.

We boomers ARE collecting Soc. Sec. and while I pay no federal taxes, I do pay state taxes for purchases, etc.
In fact, even Soc. Sec. taxes are liable to Ala state income tax,depending on income.

[More_liberal_than_mo]

8. and GI Bill

education grants, plus Pell Grants too. I'm still paying my fair share of taxes, my wife is now on Social Security and our son is living at home and collecting his educational benefits for college. Just because my family falls in that category doesn't mean we're sponging off the government. We all worked for these benefits and paid taxes while doing so.

[HopeHoops]

6. So hey, when the IRS calls I can just tell them I'm almost in the majority?

:evilgrin:

[liberal N proud]

9. Sounds like some right wing propaganda to support their less government meme

If they are including those who received tax rebates and if they took the right numbers they could have included the cash for clunkers programs and other programs that payed out.

And how many of the 45% that don't pay taxes are in the upper income levels? With all the tax loopholes, many rich manage not to pay any taxes at all.

[Rincewind]

10. And 67%

of business' don't pay any federal income taxes.

[Hamlette]

11. remember the bottom 45% of Americans receive prolly about 15% of the income in the country.

The bottom 80% of Americans share about 50% of the income.

The bottom 60% share about 26% of the income.

The bottom 40% of Americans share 12% of the income.

Why should those who have so little pay anything.

[jtuck004]

12. The guy that wants to get rid of government retirement

and unemployment is the leader of the council, a commercial real estate agent (just did a land deal so the college could build a building. The woman with the kids, on the other hand, was at JP Morgan, where several people got fired for every person that is left making hundreds of thousands of dollars. She has exhausted her 99 weeks of unemployment.

The guy at the end did the work, and now this college-trained microbiologist is out of a $50,000 a year job. Who is the rippin' bonehead that can't see that a person who is making $50,000 a year in a university is going to return far more than they are paid.

Pitchforks aren't the answer (though they work well on compost). Someone at the helm of our nation should seize this moment to fix things.

Maybe if a gathering in D.C. was followed by having all the unemployed folk mill about in a downtown street for an afternoon? Maybe a broad show of public support would kick something up...


Thank you for this one.