Category Archives: Culture War

Some Myths About American Taxes

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This is a slug for a new primer I've been meaning to write for months.  The first article is just a way to get me motivated.

5 Myths about your taxes (Washington Post)

2. Americans are overtaxed.

In 2007, federal, state and local taxes claimed about $3.8 trillion, or 27 percent of U.S. gross domestic product. That's nearly $13,000 for every American. Two-thirds of tax revenues went to the federal government.

It may sound like a lot, but other developed countries collect even more. In 2006, taxes in 30 of the world's richest countries averaged 36 percent of GDP; only Mexico, Turkey, South Korea and Japan had tax rates lower than ours. And taxes in many European countries exceeded 40 percent of GDP because these nations offer more extensive government services than the United States does.

Read it

I don't think this will change any minds on the right.  They have no interest in facts anymore. Reality is only what someone told them it was, and which felt good for them to hear—or repeat.

We Stand on the Cusp of one of Humanity’s Most Dangerous Moments

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Chris Hedges is one of our most important writers because he's not afraid to see that bad people produce bad outcomes, and good people wanting good outcomes have virtually no guarantee of winning in the long run of history. They're just fond of thinking that they might.

There are about 100 excerpts I could post here to entice you to read on, but this one caught my eye:

We live in a culture characterized by what Benjamin DeMott called “junk politics.” Junk politics does not demand justice or the reparation of rights. It always personalizes issues rather than clarifying them. It eschews real debate for manufactured scandals, celebrity gossip and spectacles. It trumpets eternal optimism, endlessly praises our moral strength and character, and communicates in a feel-your-pain language. The result of junk politics is that nothing changes, “meaning zero interruption in the processes and practices that strengthen existing, interlocking systems of socioeconomic advantage.”

Ok,here's one more..

The cultural belief that we can make things happen by thinking, by visualizing, by wanting them, by tapping into our inner strength or by understanding that we are truly exceptional is magical thinking. We can always make more money, meet new quotas, consume more products and advance our career if we have enough faith. This magical thinking, preached to us across the political spectrum by Oprah, sports celebrities, Hollywood, self-help gurus and Christian demagogues, is largely responsible for our economic and environmental collapse, since any Cassandra who saw it coming was dismissed as “negative.”

Read the Essay

CNN’s Response To Erickson Outcry: “He’s all growed up now.”

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I've actually been doing some work today, trying to unwind from a week of ankle biting CNN and Erick Erickson. I'll have more to say after a full day or two off from this asshattery.  I need some time away from the "Best Political Team on Television."

Fortunately, @Karoli says it all for me.

VIDEO:  "Howard Kurtz Allows Erick Erickson to Feign Ignorance on the Rhetoric Posted at His Blog"

Howard Kurtz interviews the newest member of their "best political team on television", RedState's Erick Erickson and asks him about the hateful rhetoric that's been posted on his blog. Erickson's defense pretty much amounts to pretending he had no idea what he was saying, that he gets any traffic and he's all grown up now, so hey… no worries right? Pitiful. If CNN actually thinks this is an adequate response to their bad judgment for hiring him, they're sadly mistaken.

Read Story & See CNN VIDEO

Seen My Post And Video About Erickson?

If not, all this noise we've been making about this absurd decision by CNN will have been in vain.

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