Just read Perfectly Legal
As you know I recently took an extended vacation and, as usual, packed a few books. Two books by David Cay Johnston made the trip. Perfectly Legal and Free Lunch. We have written about David Cay Johnston before (2 years ago). We will do so again.
I was originally going to title the post “How David Cay Johnston ruined my vacation” but on previous extended vacations, I’ve read books like Trust us We’re Experts, Fast Food Nation, What’s a matter with Kansas so Mr. Johnston is hardly alone in “ruining” my vacation.
If anything, like those other books, I come away inspired - especially as an RT founder.
So, here is the deal, EVERYONE needs to read Perfectly Legal then Free Lunch. EVERYONE.
This includes our current and future elected Congressmen in the form of Louise Slaughter, Eric Massa, Jon Powers and Dan Maffei. Frankly, this is what we need to be judging the success in Washington. We as producers of more and better Democrats with the focus on the word “better” need to ask them questions about the Tax code. The answer is more, much more than simply repeal the “Bush tax cuts”.
Ah, I can hear the remarks now - Yeah, I know already or from our friends on the right, more left wing propaganda.
Well sorry - no. To have conversations with people you need more than the sound byte - you need examples, and to be able to relate it to with whom you are speaking.
In the end it is about that true progressive value - - fairness. Specifically, the fairness of our tax system. Who doesn’t want a fair system on either the Left or Right?
So - let’s discuss Perfectly Legal. You can read on-line excerpts or interviews , but they are not the same. You need to read the book. What I liked about the book was that you could read the chapters in order or skip around.
In the end, the story is the same. Our Tax system is unfair and is decidedly favoring, as Johnston refers to them, “the Political Donor class”. Chances are you - yes you - are not part of the political donor class.
Wonder why we need Clean Money Clean Elections? Want to see exactly how difficult or the array of assets deployed to maintain and allow American tax obligation to be shifted on to the middle class?
Wonder how 401Ks actually work as opposed to traditional pensions? Anyone been out there who in the last 10 years has a traditional pension converted to a matching 401K? The chapter, Only the Rich Deserve a Comfortable Retirement, alone is worth the price of the book. Remember RochesterTel? Anyone gone through conversion of a traditional pension plan to a 401K? Yeah, read this chapter.
Companies moving their HQs to a PO box on Some Island? Read Profits Trump Patriotism.
There is more of course, Social Security, Focusing the IRS audit assets on people making 7K per year instead of auditing companies and wealthy individuals using inappropriate tax shelters.
As I have been saying when I write about COMIDA - when you remove people or companies from the tax roll, the government either shifts the burden to others meaning the middle class - reduces services, or borrows.
Then when you are done with that, read Free Lunch.
I’ll be writing about that soon.
Related posts:
Thanks for this post. I will read it when I’m done with Nixonland.
Another good read is David Sirota’s The Uprising. The point you make stlo7 regarding COMIDA is a similar point addressed in Chapter 2 of The Uprising.
I have both Free Lunch and Perfectly Legal. Great books.
I’ll look into it - sounds like a good book.
I’ve been making the COMIDA point for a long time before reading these books but it became crystallized after I finished Free Lunch.
Oh, read the other books I mentioned if you haven’t already. Mind set changers to be sure.
stlo7?
Is that really you?
An entire piece and nary a word about the proposed Bigger Bottle Tax?
OK, who are you and what did you do with stlo7?
Ah it is good to be back Ms Dogood. First off - it isn’t a Tax it is a deposit but you knew that already didn’t you. And yes I know you are joking but for everyone elses benefit
Yeah stlo is all about the bottle bill but you must have missed these gems as well
We have Maggie and Comida, MCC and Guon, FISA and Jack Davis’ less than optimal ads. Some others too
Of course there was this gem about the bottle bill too.
We may now rest easier knowing the obsession has passed.
But, I did see a flier from an advocacy group for local poor people opposing the bill. Why? It’s another unfair “tax” being imposed on the already overburdened underclass who can barely pay their grocery bills now.
Interesting perspective.
Well - I need to know more about the advocacy group and who exactly they are.
Perspectives can be interesting yet wrong.
I dispute the deposit is a tax thread. It is a deposit. payable upon returns.
Are you sure it’s not a tax?
So, the government imposes upon me a fee that I must pay that funds a program.
The overhead and labor of a government mandated program are paid for by the consumer without the ability to make an individual choice.
How is that not a tax?
Now this isn’t a discussion as to whether its a good program or a bad program. But if I’m fronting the money, and the program depends on a certain percentage of bottles not being returned for funding and no one is perfect in their ability to return every bottle, it is by definition a tax.
Which is OK for me, I like paying taxes.
Now if this is really an environmental concern, why not simpy ban plastic bottles? I mean glass is made out of sand, if you stick it in the dirt at the landfill it doesn’t do any harm, you can dig it up later and recycle it, and birds don’t choke on it.
Will the Bigger Bottle Tax bill apply to milk containers?
Oh, and even if every good American returned every single bottle for their refund, someone pays for this government mandated program.
Who would that be?
Oh come on - stop parsing narrow definitions
Return the bottle get a return of the deposit. It is a 1 for 1 exchange.
Now in terms of fairness - currently unclaimed deposits stay with grocers and bottlers. Staying on their balance sheet working on their books. Talk about wealth transfer.
Look we can argue in the comments later.
I’m not arguing.
I’m asking, if there is overhead and labor involved. And if by your contention I’m not paying for it who is?
PS: I missed your stuff while you were away.
Aww that’s sooooo sweet (dry humor alert)
Thanks ..
I’ll dig up some details.
I don’t think the customer pays because if they return a bottle they get their deposit back. I also believe that a portion of the nickel deposit is retained by the Bottling/Grocers for handling. so a nickel deposit is somehow reimbursed to the bottle/grocer expenses such that their recovery costs are recovered.
The contention is what to do with unclaimed returns as well as other stuff.
I’ll set up another post as some point where we can discuss in detail. We are off the reservation on this post but good stuff to be sure…
don’t forget the new George Lakoff too - http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/22/books/review/Saletan-t.html?partner=rssuserland&emc=rss&pagewanted=all