Why the Wealthiest Americans Are the Real 'Job-Killers'

[marmar]

AlterNet / By Joshua Holland

Why the Wealthiest Americans Are the Real 'Job-Killers'
The top 1 percent takes in more than twice the share of national income today than they did 30 years ago, and that's a big reason why consumers are tapped out.

July 19, 2011 |


That the wealthy are “job creators,” and therefore have interests that must be defended by the public at large, is a talking-point that, however facile, is so popular it slips effortlessly from the lips of conservatives every day.

It can be deployed for any purpose – not only in calling for more tax breaks for the rich, but also when opposing public interest regulation, consumer litigation and worker protections. Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minnesota, even used it to deflect attention from the "gay rehabilitation" services her clinic allegedly offers. When asked about it by ABC News, Bachmann merely acknowledged, “we do have a business that deals with job creation.” When pressed, she stuck with it: “As I said, again, we’re very proud of our business and we’re proud of all job creators in the United States.”

It's also complete nonsense; the opposite of the truth. Sure, the wealthy create a few jobs – people who offer exclusive services or sell them high-end goods. But the overwhelming majority of jobs in this country are “created” by ordinary Americans when they spend their paychecks.

Consumer demand accounts for around 70 percent of our economic output. And with so much wealth having been redistributed upward through a 40-year class-war from above, American consumers are too tapped out to spend as they once did. This remains the core issue in this sluggish, largely jobless recovery. The wealthy, in their voracious appetite for a bigger piece of the national pie, are the real job-killers in this economic climate. ...............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.alternet.org/economy/151705/why_the_wealthiest_americans_are_the_real_%27job-killers%27/

[HockeyMom]

1. If I won the lottery, would I then be a "job creator" too?

:rofl:

[raccoon]

3. Great response to these people! I'll take it! nt

[Snarkoleptic]

2. Trickle down economics is a damper on the economy as it decreases the "Velocity of Money".

Which is demonstrated by the fact that tax cuts are non-stimulative where food stamps are extremely stimulative.
Give Warren Buffet and extra $1,000 and he's socking it away, give his secretary an extra $1,000 and it's more likely to be spent.

There is a shitload of pent-up demand for goods/services among the middle class, but we're tapped out.
We need more stimulus so the economy can grow the only way it can...from the bottom-up.
Trickle up economics is the real job creator.
Trickle down economics = Voo Doo economics, but then again we've know this since before GWHB said it to Reagan.

[BlueJazz]

4. One of the things that most Americans don't realize is the Rich simply...

...don't care what happens in this country.
America goes down the tubes??...."I think Australia or Europe might be nice...maybe even Japan."
"Those countries have a lot more money"