Weekend at Bernie's

Look up the tax code rates under Eisenhower. The US economy was in top form with lots of innovation and production. This is a republican propaganda for cutting taxes for the rich. The last 30 years have shown us the benefits of cutting taxes for the rich: the rich get richer and the economy tanks with less innovation and production (which is shipped overseas).The middle class is the source of innovation and production and is the real job creating sector of the economy.Taxes are user fees, they are what you pay to live in the country and benefit from the economy. The idea is that under a just tax system those who benefit more pay more and those who barely scrape by pay the least. It used to be that education was for you to improve yourself and learn to take an intelligent approach to life, not as a route to a job. This concept has been lost in the hype to get jobs so you can work 8 or 9 hours a day doing tasks for someone else.Extending out school system from elementary, middle and high school to include optional trade schools and community colleges without charging fees of the students would let more people learn what they want to learn. Even expanding it to colleges and universities would mean they could concentrate of learning rather than fundraising. Other countries are doing this and seeing many social benefits (lower crime rates, more arts and startup artisan companies, etc).This is "free" in the same sense that public education is "free" -- the students don't pay for it as a criteria of admission.What you get out of a society depends on what you put in. If you want to life in a society of ignorant, gullible, morons (Tea Party types?) then by all means do away with school altogether -- you don't need an education to be an idiot. If on the other hand you want to live in a society of people that make intelligent, informed decisions, especially regarding democratic leaders, then you want an educated public -- not so they can get a job, but so that they can be informed and know the difference between hokum\hype\histrionics and reality.Enjoy

Perhaps conflating the Sanders proposals with the Eisenhower tax rates?http://news.yahoo.com/...-pay-taxes-193734550--abc-news.html

quote:

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Dwight D. Eisenhower

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Marginal Tax Rate on Regular Income over $400,000: 92% - 91%

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Maximum Tax Rate on Long-Term Capital Gains: 25%

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During the administration of Republican President Dwight D. Eisenhower, a 92 percent marginal income tax rate for top earners in the United States remained from the previous administration of Harry S. Truman. At the time, the highest tax bracket was for income over $400,000.

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This was nearly the highest tax rate for top earners in the century, just under the 94 percent rate for income over $200,000 instated during World War II under Franklin D. Roosevelt's presidency.

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In 1954, the 92 percent marginal rate decreased to 91 percent under Eisenhower. The maximum tax on long-term capital gains was 25 percent -- a rate that remained in place for a decade.

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There were also strong unions in the '50's so middle-class blue collar workers earned good wages.Eisenhower used tax money to build the interstate highway system, an investment in infrastructure that was designed for rapid military response to any invasion problem, but which benefited the country much more than any armament or ammunition program -- interstate commerce boomed and people had lots of disposable income.You want to "make America Great Again?" -- then return to strong unions to protect workers and just tax systems where those who benefit most from the economy pay the most to support the government that makes that economy possible.Enjoy

That would be an excellent paradigm for major college\university education, but I would still make trade schools and community colleges free for those who want to go, period. I would also wrap senior year of high school into community college and have associates degree from a cc count as freshman year of further college. This would let those who don't want an education to exit the system (temporarily -- they could always choose to go later) and enter the work-force (we ultimately need "burger flippers") or learn a trade (which can be good pay -- electrician, plumber, carpenter, nurse aid, emergency responder, etc).One of the problems is who judges the merit? Some high schools are very academically challenged and it is hard for an intelligent student to get much education in a poor learning environment. This is after all the basis for Affirmative Action, yes?One reason for going with a CC path is that it can also include remedial or catch-up education for those that come from academically challenged high schools, and prep education for later university or just a well rounded education of high quality -- with an Associates Degree.The CC's could then set the standard for the merit scholarships to higher degree programs at colleges and universities and make a Bachelors Degree a 3 year program instead of 4.A well prepared student with a known education\career path could finish the Assoc Degree in 2 years, and the Bachelor's from college or university in 3 years, so same time-line as today.Less well prepared students, and ones that don't really know what they want to study could take 3 or more years to get the Assoc - especially if they have to work part-time.CC's would also tend to be closer to home.Enjoy

And yet what we see currently are the results of extreme low tax position with increased wealth division, loss of middle-class jobs, and high rates of poverty. If I was going to pick a corrosive tax system that ruins the economy in the long run, it would be the republican plan to give away money to people who don't need it and take it from people who need it.When tax rates were more progressive from bottom to top and those who benefited most from the economy paid the most, the economy boomed.ie -- the evidence is opposite of what you claim. More conservative crap propaganda. Strong unions tend to cause just distributions of profits to those doing the work that results in the profit.Again, history shows that strong unions results in strong middle class jobs with lots of disposable income to spend, boosting the economy and creating job growth. That was when one person working could support a family -- the average worker needs two jobs or two parents working to support a family now: this is NOT a better system.Unions are not free of problems (what system is?) but I'll take those problems over the current system. Gladly.My problem with unions is that they should be obsoleted by incorporating the benefits of unions into the general economy to the benefit of all workers -- an economy with a social consciousness, which means a minimum living wage and full health benefits (single payer) etc.A mixture of socialist programs with capitalist programs.Enjoy

6+So the decision making part of the brain has not fully matured yet ... and we don't know how many of those years they decided to learn from.As a 30+ year old person I went back to school to earn another degree in a program that included many post high-school people well over 18 years old, I know the difference between taking courses because you had to, or taking courses because you wanted to learn.It was at an academy with lots of 18-20 year old kids (yes kids, as they had not fully matured) with some courses just for us, and some courses shared with the kids. They hated us -why? We ruined the curve for grades because we actually studied and learned; we knew the value of education and wanted to get as much of it as possible out of the courses, while the kids still wanted to party and play. We got all the A's.So yes, you have no idea what the potential of a student is just from mandatory high school class performance, and you won't know until that student is committed to learning as something they want.That is why CC and up should be voluntary education available any time of life.I know from personal experience.EnjoyEdited by RAZD, : .

And that may take them a few years outside of school to suss out. Or a year or two of traveling around the world (which I always thought was a good idea anyway).Enjoy