Holiday Gifs #1
of
cats and kittens
(worth waiting for, if the loading is slow)
Holiday GifsPresentsTuesday, December 5, 2017“Being good is its own reward.”Errrrrr...
most of the time... usually being good is its own reward, but some
people see good people as opportunities, marks, and targets. And good
people get hurt when those people act, whether for profit or malace.
Most of the time, the good guys are rewarded with love and caring and little treats.
Music Association: Cornelius Brothers and Sister Rose - Treat Her Like A LadyHoliday GifsPresentsMonday, December 4, 2017
Music Association: Journey - Separate WaysHoliday GifsPresentSunday, December 3, 2017
Music Association: Doors - Break On ThroughHoliday GifsStuckSaturday, December 2, 2017The
479 page tax bill passed the Senate last night with Alaskan wildlife
oil drilling, an abortion provision, unvetted-unforseen loopholes, and
pages that look like these.
Music Association: Huey Lewis - Stuck With YouHoliday GifsFor YouFriday, December 1, 2017I believe in people.
Yes, even this year.
So this month gives gifs for you to enjoy, because you deserve it.
Music Associations: Copland - Simple Gifts & Genesis - Follow You Follow MeBlowing Through All The Yellow LightsCongressional RobberyThursday, November 30, 2017Corporations
are about to get a tax cut at the same time as corporate profits are
near an all-time high. The House tax bill, which passed on
November 16th, will
increase the deficit by 1.4 trillion dollars over the next 10 years. The Senate tax bill is expected to come to a vote Friday.
[source] The federal deficit hit a record
20 trillion dollars
this year before the tax bills. Spiking the economy with more money
(the increased deficit) might set off inflation, economists warn.
[source]Both the House and Senate bills reduce the
corporate income tax from 35 percent to 20 percent. Do you pay corporate income tax? Neither do I.
Both bills double the current
estate tax
exemption for individuals to $11 million. The House bill repeals the
estate tax in 2024. Do you have $5 million or $11 million? Neither do I.
Both bills eliminate the
alternative minimum tax,
which requires that taxpayers with many deductions pay at least a
minimum amount of taxes. Have you had to pay the alternative minimum
tax? Neither have I.
The Senate bill eliminates the health insurance
individual mandate and
would open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska to
oil and gas
drilling.
[source]The
nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) says the Senate
Republican tax plan gives substantial tax cuts and benefits to
Americans earning more than $100,000 a year, while the nation’s
poorest would be worse off.
By
2019, Americans earning less than $30,000 a year would be worse off
under the Senate bill, CBO found. By 2021, Americans earning $40,000 or
less would be net losers, and by 2027, most people earning less than
$75,000 a year would be worse off. On the flip side, millionaires and
those earning $100,000 to $500,000 would be big beneficiaries,
according to the CBO’s calculations. The main reason the poor get
hit so hard in the Senate GOP bill is because the poor would receive
less government aid for health care. The CBO has calculated that health
insurance premiums would rise if this bill becomes law, leading 4
million Americans to lose health insurance by 2019 and 13 million to
lose insurance by 2027.
[source]“
This
proposal appears to be the first federal income tax modification in
American history that will raise income taxes on the working poor while
simultaneously providing a large tax cut to the wealthy. This is simply
unconscionable,” said Catholic bishops in a November 9th
letter to Congress. Households with income between $20,000 and $40,000
per year would see tax increases in 2023, 2025, and 2027. In 2025,
taxes will increase on most taxpayers earning between $10,000 and
$20,000.
[source]Only
one of 42 top economists surveyed thought the tax bills would
meaningfully expand the economy over a decade (22 disagreed or strongly
disagreed, 15 were uncertain and the rest didn't answer). The survey
was conducted by the
Initiative on Global Markets
at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. All 42
economists agreed the tax bills would leave the nation saddled with a
substantially heavier debt load relative to the size of the economy.
[source]The Urban Institute and Brookings Institution's Tax Policy Center found that
more than 50% of Americans would see a tax increase
in 2027 under the tax bill. And the Penn-Wharton Budget Model found the
tax bill would increase the federal deficit by $1.327 trillion over the
first 10 years after it becomes law (not including debt-service costs).
Even when factoring in the economic boost from the tax cuts, according
to the report, the bill would still add $1.271 trillion in debt. [
source]
Music Association: Robbie Dupree - Steal Away