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Twisted Logic on Tax Cuts
Don’t cave to Obama’s opponents
by
M arc H. M orial
It co m e s as no su r­
prise to m ost o f us that
2+2 does not equal 22.
But the current debate
over B ush-era tax cuts is
based on an illogical equa­
tion. T he goal o f any tax plan should be
to stim ulate the econom y, produce jo b s
and ease the burden on w orking and
m iddle-class A m ericans. A nything else
is pretending that 2+2=22.
The 2(K) 1 tax plan adopted to stim ulate
the econom y w as heavily w eighted in
favor o f higher incom e taxpayers. M iddle-
and w orking-class A m ericans got crum bs
w hile the upper echelon got a seven-
course m eal. A nd since the start o f the
great recession in 2007, the incom es o f
average A m ericans have plunged w hile
those o f c h ie f ex ecutive officers and
bankers have soared.
An extension o f tax cuts for the h ig h ­
est incom e groups m akes sense only if
tied to m easures that will bolster e c o ­
nom ic grow th. T hat m eans support for
business investm ent, sm all businesses
and an o th er extension o f unem ploym ent
benefits. T w o m illion unem plo y ed will
exhaust their benefits at the end o f the
y e ar if there's no extension.
It is tw isted logic to claim the country
c a n ’t afford an o th er unem ploym en t ben­
efit extension while sim ultaneously fight­
ing to explode the deficit with another big
tax break for the rich.
T he re a lity is, the in c re a se in in ­
c o m e fo r h igh net w o rth g ro u p s re s u lt­
ing fro m the B ush tax c u ts w as not
u sed to c re a te jo b s in A m e ric a - m uch
o f it in fac t w as in v e ste d o v e rse a s.
E m p lo y m e n t ro se o n ly 0 .9 p e rc e n t
b e tw ee n 2001 an d 2 0 0 3 . T ax c u ts fo r
the to p fiv e p e rc e n t w as sim p ly a bad
in v e stm e n t by a n y m ea su re .
T h o se in th e ” ta x -c u ts fo r the ric h ”
c ro w d w h o c la im d e f ic it r e d u c tio n
as an u ltim a te g o a l a re ta lk in g o u t o f
b o th s id e s o f t h e ir m o u th s . T h e i n e q ­
u ity o f th e ir p r o p o s a l is c o m p o u n d e d
by th e a b s u r d fa c t th a t it w ill a c t u ­
a lly e x a c e r b a te th e d e f ic it p ro b le m
by a d d in g a n o th e r $ 7 0 0 b illio n to o u r
c u r r e n t $ 1 .3 tr illio n n a tio n a l d e b t
o v e r th e n e x t 10 y e a r s .
A n y e x te n sio n o f tax c u ts fo r the
h ig h e st in co m e g ro u p s n o t o n ly sh o u ld
be tie d to jo b -c re a tio n m e a su re s, but
th ey sh o u ld be te m p o ra ry - lim ite d to
no m o re th an th re e y e ars. If th e to p 5
p e rc e n t is g e ttin g a se v e n -c o u rse m eal,
m id d le - a n d w o rk in g -c la ss A m e ric a n s
m u st be g u a ra n te e d at lea st an e n tré e .
H ow , in good co n scien ce, can w e give
tax breaks to the w ealth iest w hile d e n y ­
ing unem ploym ent benefits to m iddle and
w orking class A m ericans w ho have lost
their jo b s through no fault o f th eir ow n ?
H ow can we m ake it p ossible for
m illionaires to buy an ex tra M ercedes
each year, w hile m iddle class fam ilies
are struggling to pay bills and send th eir
kids to co lleg e? H ow can w e continue to
give tax breaks to in d iv id u als and c o m ­
panies that are shipping jo b s overseas,
w hile 15 m illion A m erican s are d e sp e r­
ately looking for w ork?
P resident O b am a should not cave to a
C o n g ress preten d in g that 2+ 2= 22. T he
country has nothing to g ain from any
attem p t by the P resid en t to ap p ease
those w ho have already d eclared their
only goal is to assure his d efeat in 2012
- even if that m eans m ak in g a dire
econom ic situation w orse.
Marc H. Morial is president and
chief executive officer o f the National
Urban League.
Remembering the Least Among Us
Giving our time,
talent and
treasure
As I enter the 2010 out loud with my loved ones. His­
holiday season, I ad­ tory has proven that a good time will
mit that I am looking be had by most, if not all.
forward to eating tur­
However, I am acutely aware that
key, dressing, cran­ many people will find it difficult to
berry sauce, watching celebrate the season or feel festive
by B entley de B ardelaben
football and laughing despite the multitude of reminders
bombarding our senses as we move
about our daily lives.
Sure reasons will vary, but sad­
ness, depression and anxieties over­
hang our land. Over the past months,
people, some of whom are our neigh­
Portland Congress Center
bors, will have lost their livelihood,
1OO1 2 W Fifth Avenue. 2to 1 1OO. Portland. Oregon 9 7 2 0 4
Phono: 5 0 3 -2 2 0 -1 7 9 0
Fax: 1 +503-220-1815
their shelter, a family member, close
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www.hodgocoun9oling.com
friend or learned of a recent illness
to self or loved one.
Believe it or not, even the loss
of daylight and sunlight can af­
fect a person's mood. Human life
is wrought with up and downs.
None of us can escape its twists
and turns, highs and lows. Find­
ing supports and tools to effec­
tively m anage these stressors as
they occur is essential to our suc­
D r. H. L. Hodge, P h .D .
Licensed C h ris tia n Counselor
cess.
As a person of faith, prayer is
Counseling God's Way
Hodge Comprehensive Counseling Service
Services Include;
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Relationship Specialist
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! Q 11H C n
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important to me. It is something that
I practice daily. Yet, when one is
feeling “down in the dumps” or ex­
periencing the “blues” prayer may
not be enough to move one through
the fog Fortunately, mental health
programs abound in our communi­
ties and are available for little to no
cost. Facilities can be found online.
One such website managed by the
government’s health administration
is samhsa.gov.
To be candid, during the course
o f this year and in the span of a few
months, both o f my parents had
major health scares. The emotional
toil that it had on me, while trying to
maintain full time employment,
caused me great distress. I knew it
and my loved ones noticed the strain
as well.
T hankfully, I addressed the
symptoms by meeting with a thera­
pist to help me process the sensory
overload I felt. I did this in addition
to my prayer and meditation rou­
tine. Within weeks, I felt better and
I saw a way out. Additionally, my
Fill O ut & Send To: i i .
parents are recuperating nicely and
that too has been a relief to my heart
and mind.
As we begin to navigate the pres­
sures of the holiday season, let us
remember those for whom this time
may be especially difficult. If we are
able be generous of time, talent and
treasure, let us consider sharing
them.
Feed the hungry, clothe the na­
ked, visit the infirmed and more im­
portantly find a reason to express
gratitude. My faith teaches me that
in doing these things, I am honoring
each of us as a child of God.
Everyone deserves respect, self
worth, dignity, grace, forgiveness
and love. I have learned that the
reward in the giving is greater, than
in the receiving. So whatever situa­
tion you are currently in, I pray your
holidays will be merry, bright and
filled with the awareness of G od’s
unfailing love and light.
Bentley de Bardelaben is an ex­
ecutive fo r Justice Ministries in the
United Church o f Christ.
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