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Raise taxes on the poor so they can live longer

Discussion in 'BBS Hangout: Debate & Discussion' started by ThatBoyNick, Dec 4, 2019.

  1. ThatBoyNick

    ThatBoyNick Member

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    Very serious left-wing(wink-wink) presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg has words of wisdom to spread.



    "Forget progressive tax rates, regressive tax rates are where it's at!" - Said the filthy rich billionaire.
     
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  2. Invisible Fan

    Invisible Fan Contributing Member

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    Americans are so conditioned to shudder at the word Tax(es) to the point where it's reflexively considered a form of theft of their money.

    I'd look for the whole clip but I'm pretty sure he's making a case for Sin Taxes to curb bad or personally destructive behavior. This is most commonly seen with cigarettes or alcohol, but the NYC Soda Ban was a rallying cry for many conservatives and independents for the excessive meddling done on the poor (and ofc the fat asses and/or fat wallets of the critics). I think they were also against a transfat tax before transfats were banned for manufacture in the US.

    The wiki lays out its pros and cons, but I think what's worthy and unwritten are the underling principles before for or against. Bloomberg essentially implies that poor people can't make the best decisions for themselves and need leaders from government or business to "nudge" them what to do. On the other hand, behavioral economics has a large body of evidence on how a different approach to the same problem can have wide reaching successes without necessarily creating new organizations/agencies/task groups.

    IMO, taxing in this form is just as corrosive in principle to how businesses influence the consumer, an onslaught of advertising that pushes the boundaries of misleading or outright lying. I'm pretty sure the poor are as susceptible to lies and misrepresentation (just look at the lotto, how it works, and whom it mostly grabs) as they are to the "regressive" and avoidant intents of a sin tax.

    The failure to reining in tobacco has displayed most of the flawed thinking for sin taxes and shouldn't be hailed as a miraculous solution to solve po pipl's problems. That big Tobacco settlement in the 90s just made state governments addicted to those companies (more precisely, the settlement money) and essentially guaranteed Big Tobacco's existence and gov protection. There was also some news clip I saw about how Tobacco companies are way way way more profitable than any other blue chip/tech giant with probably the exception of oil majors.

    What they have done is insidious. They market two brands, one that we all know and love. The another, a discount brand. They hide the higher markup in the premium brand with the excuse and public knowledge of the sin tax. With that onsite comparison, the customer now has a muddled impression of market rates no matter which brand they choose. All while blaming the g-man for bankrupting their unshakable habit.

    We all know how cheap sugar and soda water is. I'm pretty sure they can use the same **** tactic by selling Sam's Choice for a buck (post sin tax), then mark up Real Coke for 2.

    It's so twisted Bloomberg doesn't even use the "Take down evil companies" rhetoric anymore and instead shifts the blame, shame, and burden on a group that votes less than the target demo he's talking down to.
     
  3. ThatBoyNick

    ThatBoyNick Member

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    I'll have to find the whole clip, and you made a well-written post on your thoughts about the sin taxes and I don't know exactly where I stand on that, but he is also saying regressive tax... which is pretty clearly about something else to me, but perhaps you're right about it being purely about a sin tax I'll have to look it up.
     
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  4. ThatBoyNick

    ThatBoyNick Member

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    Found the full video, it is purely about sin taxes, it needs to be framed in the manner of - thoughts on SIN tax.



    I'd like to publically retract the way I framed this thread
     
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  5. Senator

    Senator Member

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    I would delete this thread
    The Sin Tax is something really, really good for poor Americans , I grew up as one and would never have developed a work ethic or savings if I spent money on junk
    And let's not forget that with sin taxes, you need alternate options of stuff that is actually good for humanity that rich areas have plenty of.
     
  6. ThatBoyNick

    ThatBoyNick Member

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    Don't have the option to, and if I did I wouldn't delete it but would correctly reframe it in a discussion about sin tax because there is probably one to be had. That being said, if anybody reads the thread they can see that I admitted to being confused about what he was talking about.
     
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  7. KingCheetah

    KingCheetah Contributing Member

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    Why do that when you can this short clip totally out of context.

    #BernieBro #BernRubber #ArianaGrande
     
  8. B-Bob

    B-Bob "94-year-old self-described dreamer"

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    Kudos to you. Has this ever happened before in D&D?

    [​IMG]
     
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  9. ThatBoyNick

    ThatBoyNick Member

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    I was just a hair away from doubling down on my OP post and arguing for 10 pages.
     
    KingCheetah likes this.
  10. Nook

    Nook Member

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