Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100...
If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this...
The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.
The fifth would pay $1.
The sixth would pay $3.
The seventh would pay $7.
The eighth would pay $12.
The ninth would pay $18.
The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.
So, that's what they decided to do..
The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve ball. "Since you are all such good customers," he said, "I'm going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20". Drinks for the ten men would now cost just $80.
The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes. So the first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free. But what about the other six men ? How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his fair share?
They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody's share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer.
So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's bill by a higher percentage the poorer he was, to follow the principle of the tax system they had been using, and he proceeded to work out the amounts he suggested that each should now pay.
And so the fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% saving).
The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33% saving).
The seventh now paid $5 instead of $7 (28% saving).
The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% saving).
The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% saving).
The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% saving).
Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to drink for free. But, once outside the bar, the men began to compare their savings.
"I only got a dollar out of the $20 saving," declared the sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man, “but he got $10!"
"Yeah, that's right," exclaimed the fifth man. "I only saved a dollar too. It's unfair that he got ten times more benefit than me!"
"That's true!" shouted the seventh man. "Why should he get $10 back, when I got only $2? The wealthy get all the breaks!"
"Wait a minute," yelled the first four men in unison, "we didn't get anything at all. This new tax system exploits the poor!"
The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.
The next night the tenth man didn't show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had their beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn't have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill!
And that, boys and girls, journalists and government ministers, is how our tax system works. The people who already pay the highest taxes will naturally get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start drinking overseas, where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.
David R. Kamerschen, Ph.D. Professor of Economics.
For those who understand, no explanation is needed.
For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible
THE TAX SYSTEM EXPLAINED IN BEER
Cash-Paying Patients are Such a Bother
When is the last time you paid cash for something and the seller made you fill out a signed, witnessed, and dated form explaining that you were expected to pay in full at the time of purchase immediately after you had signed a credit card slip authorizing payment for the full price of the service that was about to be rendered?
Never? You obviously haven’t tried to pay cash for health care lately.Called things like “Self-pay financial policy and waivers” or “uninsured patient information documents,” the forms treat self-pay patients like chumps who must be reminded of their responsibilities. Even if you have just written a check or run your credit card for the full quoted price of a discrete routine service, you will still be required to sign and date a witnessed document saying that you know you are responsible for paying for services.
At HCA facilities, the Patient Information Document helpfully explains that
- the “balance due on the account is expected to be paid in full at the time of service,”
- “if you are unable to pay the discounted account balance in full, we will work with you to establish monthly payment arrangements,”
- if “you cannot establish monthly payment arrangements, we will assist you with applying for Medicaid assistance,”
- “if you quality for a charity discount based upon Federal Poverty Guidelines, your account will be considered paid in full.”
The “Self-Pay Financial Policy and Waiver” form for a group of physical therapy clinics explains that its cash pay clinic fees will be reduced “from our regular commercial fee schedule to $80.” Although the clinics say they are always willing to take your money, paying patients must stipulate that they understand that “payments received after the date of service will be accepted but no reduction of fees will be made” and that “no forms will be produced now or in the future for you or us to submit for insurance billing.”
In short: Pay cash, eliminate collections overhead, and get reduced prices.
Real health care reform will have arrived when cash is the norm for routine services, and those who pay cash are treated as valued customers rather than as potential deadbeats.
White House - Dem Meltdown
November 4, 2010 -- Obama conducting "reign of terror" against suspected White House leakers
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President Obama was urged by the few White House insiders from whom he still takes advice to leave the country on his ten-day Asian trip, his longest trip abroad since becoming president, in order to not inflict any more damage to the Democratic Party in the wake of one of the worst electoral defeats for the party of an incumbent president in recent history.
According to sources close to the White House, who put themselves in great danger by even talking to members of the media, the plans to have Obama leave for a visit to India, Pakistan, Indonesia, South Korea, and Japan are an attempt to get Obama out of the country while top Democrats can sort through the political disaster created for the party by Obama's increasingly detached-from-reality presidency.
Virtual political guerrilla warfare has broken out between Obama's inner circle on one hand and senior Democratic officials, including outgoing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Democratic Party strategist James Carville, former Demcratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean, and, behind-the-scenes, Vice President Joe Biden and former President Bill Clinton, on the other.
Top Democrats are still reeling from Obama's bizarre behavior at a $7500-a-plate fundraiser at a stately mansion at Brown University in Rhode Island on October 25. The fundraiser, organized by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, was supposed to highlight Democratic Party unity. However, while Obama endorsed Democratic House candidate David Cicilline for outgoing Representative Patrick Kennedy's seat, the president failed to endorse Democratic gubernatorial candidate Frank Caprio over Republican-turned-independent former Senator Lincoln Chafee.
Obama's lack of an endorsement for a Democrat over a former Republican prompted Caprio to tell a radio show host that Obama "could take his endorsement and really shove it as far as I'm concerned."
Later that day, Obama briefly appeared at the fundraiser at Brown University, where Democratic loyalists paid $7500 to hear Obama speak, but departed after only twenty minutes, telling the assembled guests that he had to go back to the White House to "tuck in my daughters, walk the dog, and 'scoop the poop.'"
The Democratic faithful were appalled and shocked at Obama's quick departure and one of the three reasons he gave for it: to scoop up dog turds as if the President of the United States actually performs such tasks with a phalanx of White House staff and Secret Service agents at his disposal.
Vice President Biden knows too well about Obama's lack of attention to his daily tasks of being president.
The details of the fiasco at Brown soon were conveyed to Biden by his two old Democratic Senate colleagues from Rhode Island: Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse.
Biden was not amused about Obama's dissing of the Democrats in Rhode Island.
A week later, Chafee defeated Caprio for the Rhode Island governorship, thanks largely to Obama's less-than-neutral stance in cutting a secret deal to support Chafee against Caprio.
White House leaks about the ineffectiveness of Obama's presidency are expandng beyond the revelations attributed to a former high-level Obama administration insider and which have been reported by a blogger named "Ulsterman."
Some White House staffers have described a "reign of terror" in the White House over continued leaks and a troika of leadership that is making decisions without any input from the president.
The troika reportedly consists of First Lady Michelle Obama, presidential adviser Valerie Jarrett, and the president's mother-in-law, Marian Robinson, who resides in the White House.
Not to be deterred, some White House staffers have sought out journalists and have arranged to meet them at nearby Starbuck's cafes to discretely convey to them inside information about the current disarray within the Obama administration.
Some staffers have personally born the brunt of Obama's temper and witnessed his extreme narcissistic behavior.
WMR has also learned from White House sources that Obama is taking presciption anxiety medication.
Vice President Biden, under intense pressure from some Democratic Party officials and Cabinet members to invoke Article 25, Section 4 of the Constitution and have Obama
temporarily or permanently removed as president because of his mental incapacity to fulfill his constitutional oath as president is reluctant to take such drastic action.
Biden feels that the country would "become unglued" after such action and he doesn't want to be the one who would be responsible for "picking up the pieces,"
according to a source who works within Biden's office.
Some staffers have said on deep background that the revelations by the ex-White House official to "Ulsterman" are not even half of the story about what is actually occurring in the White House.
However, Biden and other Democratic and adminstration do believe that if Obama were to display some of the same reckless behavior publicly as many
White House personnel have witnessed privately, there may be wide support for enactment of the provisions of the 25th Amendment.
Such a public display by Obama that could trigger succession action might involve a public outburst, including the use of foul language or a statement that Obama
believes there is a conspiracy against him.
On October 5, Obama was addressing Fortune magazine's "Most Powerful Women" summit in Washington, DC.
During the middle of Obama's speech, the presidential seal fell off the podium.
Publicly, Obama took the incident as a joke, but WMR has learned from White House insiders that Obama went on a tirade after the incident,
accusing White House staffers of purposely not anchoring the seal to the podium.
The White House supplies all the podiums and seals at all presidential addresses and the seal is usually well-anchored with four screws affixed to the podium.
Obama reportedly "freaked out" and accused White House staffers of engaging in a conspiracy against him.
The presidential tirade over such a trivial matter was not lost on senior administration officials who have witnessed
Obama's lackadaisical behavior during the consideration of much weightier issues, for example, the war in Afghanistan.
Although some observers believe African-Americans would react negatively to the invocation of the 25th Amendment,
WMR has learned that members of the Congressional Black Caucus would reluctantly go along with such a move.
Many in their ranks, including outgoing House Judiciary Committee chairman John Conyers (D-MI) were outraged over Obama's lack of interest in Haiti after that nation's devastating earthquake.
For many black caucus members, it was their first indication that there was something very wrong with Obama and his grasp of reality.
With Obama intent on running for re-election and seriously considering sending White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs to the Democratic National Committee
(DNC) to replace former Virginia Governor Tim Kaine, the potential Democratic challengers to Obama in 2012 are beginning to stir.
WMR has learned that former DNC chairman Howard Dean is seriously considering a challenge to Obama as is Secretary of State Hillary Clinton,
who will reportedly depart Foggy Bottom after Defense Secretary Robert Gates leaves his position, possibly in January.
Several top Democrats consider Obama's chances to keep the White House in 2012 as slim and they find it fanciful that White House policy adviser
David Axelrod is moving back to Chicago to work on Obama's 2012 re-election campaign, an effort many Democratic officials find a "fool's errand."
Obama also is disengaged from the plight of his former Senate Democratic colleagues in the wake of their near loss of the Senate with a much-reduced majority.
There is pressure on Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to step down as Majority Leader.
However, Charles Schumer (D-NY), who has been mentioned as a replacement, reportedly has let it be known that he will not carry Obama's water as Majority Leader
and may not want the job after all.
The Majority Whip is Dick Durbin (D-IL) but he is seen as part of the Obama Chicago Mafia and almost every Democratic senator agrees on one thing:
they do not want Durbin as their Majority Leader.
Obama, the titular head of the Democratic Party, has refused to weigh in with any effective leadership as congressional Democrats pick up the pieces and lick their wounds.
Meanwhile, a team of ex-CIA officers are traveling the globe assembling a dossier of documents on Obama's past, including his education, passport, travel, and residency records.
The team has scoured Kenya, Indonesia, Pakistan, and other countries collecting documents that are not already mantained in the CIA's own files on Obama's past.
There is a possibility, according to WMR's sources, that any "smoking gun" documents may be released while Obama is in Asia in order to elicit a public and,
perhaps, irrational enough response from the president to prompt the public to begin raising questions about Obama's suitability for office.
Such an incident would make it easier for Biden to begin the succession process that was previously considered when President Richard Nixon was drinking heavily
and taking prescription medication during the final days of his administration,
twice during the Ronald Reagan administration -- after the attempted assassination and in 1987 when he demonstrated early stages of Alzheimer's Disease,
and during the Bill Clinton administration, when Clinton's self-destructive sexual antics had Vice President Al Gore considering taking similar steps
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waynemadsenreport.com
Wayne Madsen (Washington)
BBQ****Katy, Texas
Muslims want to build an Islamic Cultural Center in Katy, TX
One of the key things I see is not the legality or constitutionality of whether or not they have a legal right to build the Islamic Victory Monument at the site of their victory on 9-11. It is purely the absolute nastiness and ugliness of the Muslims in general as being neighbors. Every country they have immigrated Islam into, they have begun subverting the culture, and as their numbers grow, they become more confrontational and aggressive.
A particularly nasty group of Muslims wanted to build such an Islamic Cultural Center in Katy, TX in the Houston suburbs. They bought the land in the semi-rural area where livestock was still permitted. They had barely broken ground when they started complaining about the cattle and horses on the property next to theirs. They picked on the WRONG man, who was a Vietnam Era Vet and had an attitude. He countered with complaining to them about their proposed sound system that broadcasted the Islamic Call to Prayer 5 times a day, and said since he was a Christian, that it offended him, and he demanded they eliminate it from their plans or at least keep the volume low so it wouldn't violate his property! They left in a huff and returned a few days later with a lawyer.
He did a little more zoning research and found that he could raise PIGS on his property, legally! He then decided that he would follow their Islamic calendar and on every holiday, would hold public Pig Races and a good pork BBQ event!!!! Perfectly LEGAL, but he only returned the neighborliness that was extended to him by the Muslims. Dan'l, a good friend of mine and fellow Southern troublemaker, and I were going to sponsor a pig that would be trained to race. The Pig Races are a Texas State Fair tradition and are very entertaining. But alas, seems that the Warriors of Islam had a change of heart about the location of their Islamic Cultural Center!
I would LOVE to see the Southern Pork BBQ Hall of Fame and cultural Center in NYC across the street from the Cordoba House Islamic Victory Monument! It could be the very Embassy of the South with the magnificent African-American BBQ pit Masters guest cooking in the restaurant and holding seminars on the finer points of BBQ'ing the noble and beloved Swine!
BTW... did you know the significance of the name Cordoba House? Cordoba, Spain was conquered by the Muslims in the 1200's and the Catholic Cathedral was reduced to rubble and a Mosque was built on the ruins of the cathedral! Interesting, isn't it? Muslims have a thing about building on top of conquered nations' symbolic places. Know what the Dome of the Rock is sitting on? Solomon's Temple and the former home of the Ark of the Covenant among other Christian and Jewish relics. Hey, folks, it's all legal!
The moral of this story is that we need more real Texans weighing in on this mess! We'll straighten out these people, post haste!
NUFF SAID: ...DON'T MESS WITH TEXAS
This is the Vouch Site:
'My Fellow Americans: As you all know, the defeat of the Iraq regime has been completed.
Since Congress does not want to spend any more money on this war, our mission in Iraq is complete.
This morning I gave the order for a complete removal of all American forces from Iraq . This action will be complete within 30 days. It is now time to begin the reckoning.
Before me, I have two lists. One list contains the names of countries which have stood by our side during the Iraq conflict. This list is short. The United Kingdom , Spain , Bulgaria , Australia , and Poland are some of the countries listed there.
The other list contains every one not on the first list. Most of the world's nations are on that list. My press secretary will be distributing copies of both lists later this evening.
Let me start by saying that effective immediately, foreign aid to those nations on List 2 ceases indefinitely. The money saved during the first year alone will pretty much pay for the costs of the Iraqi war. THEN EVERY YEAR THEREAFTER It'll GO TO OUR SOCIAL SECURITY SYSTEM SO IT WON’T GO BROKE IN 20 YEARS.
The American people are no longer going to pour money into third world Hell holes and watch those government leaders grow fat on corruption.
Need help with a famine? Wrestling with an epidemic? Call France.
In the future, together with Congress, I will work to redirect this money toward solving the vexing social problems we still have at home. On that note, a word to terrorist organizations. Screw with us and we will hunt you down and eliminate you and all your friends from the face of the earth.
Thirsting for a gutsy country to terrorize? Try France or maybe China .
I am ordering the immediate severing of diplomatic relations with France , and Russia . Thanks for all your help, comrades. We are retiring from NATO as well.
I have instructed the Mayor of New York City to begin towing the many UN diplomatic vehicles located in Manhattan with more than two unpaid parking tickets to sites where those vehicles will be stripped, shredded and crushed. I don't care about whatever treaty pertains to this. You creeps have tens of thousands of unpaid tickets. Pay those tickets tomorrow or watch your precious Benzes, Beamers and limos be turned over to some of the finest chop shops in the world. I love New York.
A special note to our neighbors: Canada is on List 2. Since we are likely to be seeing a lot more of each other, you folks might want to try not pissing us off for a change.
Mexico is also on List 2. Its president and his entire corrupt government really need an attitude adjustment. I will have a couple thousand extra tanks and infantry divisions sitting around. Guess where I am going to put 'em? Yep, border security.
Oh, by the way, the United States is abrogating the NAFTA treaty - starting now.
We are tired of the one-way highway. Immediately, we'll be drilling for oil in Alaska -which will take care of this country's oil needs for decades to come. If you're an environmentalist who opposes this decision, I refer you to List 2 above: pick a country and move there.
It is time for America to focus on its own welfare and its own citizens. Some will accuse us of isolationism. I answer them by saying, 'darn tootin.'
Nearly a century of trying to help folks live a decent life around the world has only earned us the undying enmity of just about everyone on the planet. It is time to eliminate hunger in America . It is time to eliminate homelessness in America . To the nations on List 1, a final thought. Thank you guys. We owe you and we won't forget.
To the nations on List 2, a final thought: You might want to learn to speak Arabic.
God bless America . Thank you and good night.'
(Let's get this to every USA computer!)
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