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As much as Steve Lonegan's religious right wing views scare me, he is the only candidate that understands how to start to fix the state's finances and make it's tax policies more friendly for businesses so more jobs are created instead of driving everyone out like Corzine is.
No one seems to grasp the fact that it is the wealthy who can most easily pull-up stakes and move out of a bad situation. Employment aside, these people have the smarts and capability to move to some place more appealing. Sure, the masses will thumb their noses at those "elitist snobs," much like the responses in the Rush Limbaugh leaving NYC thread, but when it comes tax and budget time, their absence will be SORELY missed.
For too long NJ has leaned on their geographic location between two major cities to allow them to avoid incentives. What do we need incentived for, we're XXX minutes from NYC, thats our incentive. That is not working as much anymore. Companies are much more willing to move to places that are more advantageous to their bottom line. This is all about creating an environment conducive for growth, for EVERYONE. Increasing taxes does not do that.
For a laugh, I attached something called "barstool economics" that describes this scenatio perfectly.
Barstool Economics
This is hopefully something everyone can understand - this is why the wealthy should be treated fairly...
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. '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 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 - the paying customers? 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 roughly the same amount, and he
proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay.
And so:
The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings)
The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33%savings).
The seventh now pay $5 instead of $7 (28%savings).
The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings).
The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings).
The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings).
Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to
drink for free. But once outside the restaurant the
men began to compare their savings.
'I only got a dollar out of the $20,'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 than I!'
'That's true!!' shouted the seventh man. 'Why should he get $10 back when I
got only two? The wealthy get all the breaks!'
'Wait a minute,' yelled the first four men in unison. 'We didn't get
anything at all. The 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 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 college >> professors, is how our
tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes
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, University of Georgia
No one seems to grasp the fact that it is the wealthy who can most easily pull-up stakes and move out of a bad situation. Employment aside, these people have the smarts and capability to move to some place more appealing. Sure, the masses will thumb their noses at those "elitist snobs," much like the responses in the Rush Limbaugh leaving NYC thread, but when it comes tax and budget time, their absence will be SORELY missed....
And the richest couple in America is: Bill & Melinda Gates! No surprise there... but there's a good reason why they live in the State of Washington. Washington is one of a small handful of states that do not impose income taxes upon residents!
If Bill and Melinda moved to New Jersey, a half-billion-dollar annual state income tax bill would be quite possible. Half-a-billion or zero... you decide!
whenever I see people criticizing a four-month old administration, I know that their complaints are politically motivated, and they aren't in the discussion for its empirical components. I'll take the bait, and remind these people that G.W. Bush & his cronies spent 8 years implementing every aspect of the bankrupt economic policies of Reaganomics. Our economy and banking system now lie in ruins because of this.
whenever I see people criticizing a four-month old administration, I know that their complaints are politically motivated, and they aren't in the discussion for its empirical components. I'll take the bait, and remind these people that G.W. Bush & his cronies spent 8 years implementing every aspect of the bankrupt economic policies of Reaganomics. Our economy and banking system now lie in ruins because of this.
mmmhmmm...
In 1999 the Congress enacted and President Clinton signed into law the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, spearheaded by activist Charles Cordonier also known as the "Financial Services Modernization Act". This law repealed the part of the Glass-Steagall Act that had prohibited a bank from offering a full range of investment, commercial banking, and insurance services since its enactment in 1933.
whenever I see people criticizing a four-month old administration, I know that their complaints are politically motivated, and they aren't in the discussion for its empirical components. I'll take the bait, and remind these people that G.W. Bush & his cronies spent 8 years implementing every aspect of the bankrupt economic policies of Reaganomics. Our economy and banking system now lie in ruins because of this.
I seems to me that you missed the point entirely. This thread (and the referenced article) is about the peril of state income taxes and how decisions to soak the rich can backfire on state treasuries. It has nothing to do with the "four-month old administration" (assuming you refer to the Obama Administration?) -- nor its predecessor Dubya and Co.
The criticism is against excessive state taxes... which we're well familiar with in New Jersey. New Jersey's state taxes have been excessive -- some of the highest in the nation -- for decades. It hasn't mattered much whether Democrat or Republican are in the Governor's Mansion.
Reaganomics and the ruin of our financial system may be two great topics for discussion, but they're mostly irrelevant to this thread.
whenever I see people criticizing a four-month old administration, I know that their complaints are politically motivated, and they aren't in the discussion for its empirical components. I'll take the bait, and remind these people that G.W. Bush & his cronies spent 8 years implementing every aspect of the bankrupt economic policies of Reaganomics. Our economy and banking system now lie in ruins because of this.
who mentioned the new admin? a little overly defensive are we? dont dare to criticize the one!
If New Jersey really wants to improve their economy and bring jobs and workers home to New Jersey they should follow suit of Missouri and enact a state Fair Tax and completely drop the state income tax and corporate income tax. The Fair Tax is a consumption tax and is paid on lifestyle instead of hard work and sweat. It would provide a poverty level prebate back to all New Jersey citizens untaxing ALL New Jersey citizens up to the poverty level. With no corporate income tax companies would be running to New Jersey to set up shop. They would be able to produce products cheaper by not having to take from profits to pay state income taxes. Was better incentive than no income tax to draw business to your state?
The fair tax will solve all the problems and will tax people on what they spend rather than what they earn. The tax base is increased and more revenue is created. Its the win-win solution. You can't get out of debt by growing government and spending money. A state version of the FairTax Act would be hard to cheat, would produce much more usable revenue, and, be much simpler and transparent. It would stop the outflow of taxpayers and generate jobs and capital investment in the state. And, it would be very easy to collect. The method is already available in most all modern cash registers now in use. enact a state version of the FairTax (HR25/S296). This plan would completely untax the poor while creating thousands of jobs by making New Jersey a tax haven for corporations who set up shop there. The FairTax would spread the tax base to more taxpayers, including visitors to the Garden State.
Please everyone vote for Lonegan, just don't ask him about abortions or gay rights :x
The FairTax is fair, and in fact, much fairer than the income tax. Wealthy people spend more money than other individuals. They buy expensive cars, big houses, and yachts. They buy filet mignon instead of hamburger, fine wine instead of beer, designer dresses, and expensive jewelry. The FairTax taxes them on these purchases. If, however, they use their money to build job-creating factories, finance research and development to create new products, or fund charitable activities (all of which help improve the standard of living of others), then those activities are not taxed.
Corporations are legal fictions that have not, do not, and never will bear the burden of taxation. Only people pay taxes. Corporations pass on their tax burden in the form of higher prices to consumers, lower wages to workers, and/or lower returns to investors. The idea that taxing a corporation reduces taxes on, say the working poor, is a cruel hoax. A corporate tax only makes what the working poor buy more expensive, costs them jobs, lowers their lifestyle, or delays their retirement. Under the FairTax Plan, money retained in the business and reinvested to create jobs, build factories, or develop new technologies, pays no tax. This is the most honest, fair, productive tax system possible. Free market competition will do the rest.
With the penalty for working harder and producing more removed, Americans are free to keep every dollar they earn, and a new era of economic growth and job creation is unleashed. Hidden taxes are history, Americans are able to save more, and businesses invest more. Capital formation, the real source of job creation and innovation, is facilitated. Gross domestic product (GDP) increases by an estimated 10.5 percent in the first year alone. The FairTax as proposed raises the economy’s capital stock by 42 percent, its labor supply by 4 percent, its output by 12 percent, and its real wage rate by 8 percent.
As U.S. companies and individuals repatriate, on a tax-free basis, income generated overseas, huge amounts of new capital flood into the United States. With such a huge capital supply, real interest rates remain low. Additionally, other international investors will seek to invest here to avoid taxes on income in their own countries, thereby further spurring the growth of our own economy.
Two of the largest economies in the world rely almost solely on sales taxes: Florida and Texas.
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The Richest Couple in America
