Wealth concentration threatens America

If the wealthy are the job creators, they sure have been lousy at it lately.  You'd think we'd have jobs coming out of our ears.

No, the real job creators are the middle class, whose spending has always been the key driver of our economy.  A rapidly growing pool of wealth stagnates among the wealthy, while the shrinking middle class contributes less and less to economic circulation.

Blocking our recovery is the infamous Golden Rule: those with the gold make the rules.  As the rich have become richer, they have become more powerful, blocking any attempts to restore balance.  The concentration of wealth has now reached dangerous levels, a vicious cycle threatening not only our economy but democracy itself.

Imposing a modest surtax on income beyond a million dollars isn't about class envy, or punishing wealth, or ending capitalism.  It's about saving our country.

Congress and the President: Don't drop the millionaire surtax!

It has come to my attention that despite the President's laudable insistence so far on a new tax bracket for income over a million dollars a year, Democratic leaders are considering dropping it.  Please don't walk away from this important policy!

Bush-era rollbacks of progressive taxation resulted in a greatly increased concentration of wealth among a few powerful people, while the poor and the middle class saw their standard of living decline.

The problem with our less-progressive tax structure is not just that it's unfair.  It's also unwise.  Contrary to Republican rhetoric, job creation comes from the consumer spending of the masses, not the stagnant wealth of the rich. The economy is having a hard time recovering because the poor and middle class have a smaller slice of the pie than ever.

And in our money-driven political system, the increase in concentration of wealth has been accompanied by an even more dramatic increase in concentration of political power among the few.  The wealthiest now own not only most of the economy, but most of the Congress.  The "Golden Rule" of those with the gold making the rules has never been more true.

Restoring progressive taxation is crucial not only to millions of struggling Americans, but to the economic recovery and to the restoration of democracy in America.   Please strike a blow against corruption and decay, and don't back down now!

Republicans don't understand small business

Republicans say we shouldn't raise taxes on millionaires because many of them own small businesses whose profits are taxed as personal income.  This argument is ignorant and misleading.

Having once owned a small "S" corporation myself, I know these businesses' owners are only taxed on the net profits, after paying all expenses and workers.  Raising tax rates on the wealthiest of them does not discourage hiring, as the Republicans claim.  In fact, hiring an additional worker actually reduces their tax burden.