Political Notes

August 1, 2011

Politics Notes 7/2011

Monthly Notes:

Sony & Warner Bros & Universal & Walt Disney & Paramount & 20th Century Fox control 95% of US film industry
Sony & Time Warner & GE & Walt Disney & Viacom & News Corp have 90% of all US media
In 2007 the average American household borrowed 127% of its income, now 112%
Earnings for companies expected to raise 13.6% compared to a year ago
Older workers are taking teenager jobs so teens are out of work
Citigroup eliminated 5,000 jobs and only paid 16.9% taxes
Only 4% of Americans think corporations are paying their fair share
Corporate taxes in the US are among the lowest of developed countries
Separation of campaign and state, abusive campaign regulation = no regulation
In 1980 500,000 people were incarcerated, now 2.3M
No jobs bill in this Congress, they haven’t doe anything but attack Planned Parenthood
88% of income of the economy to profit, 1% goes to wages
If Apple made everything here they’d still make 50% profit
500K less government jobs since Obama took office
Total revenue as a share of GDP has been under 15% for 3 straight years
In 1950 corporate tax counted for 5% of revenue of GDP, now 1.2%
We spend over $1T in loopholes, subsidies, breaks in tax codes a year
Defense spending 3.1% of US economy in 2001, 4.8% in 2010
For 14th year in a row the Pentagon asked for an increase in funds
Bush was the first president to cut taxes during war time
Reagan more than equaled the entire debt burden produced by previous 200 years
Michele Bachmann has a farm and takes farm subsidies
Legalizing pot would give us a profit of $24B over 10 years
Pass McCain/Kennedy 2007 act would give us a profit of $48B
First time in 60 years the net immigration is 0
Financial service industry spent more than $95M last year in campaigns
If every American gave up meat and cheese for one day a week it would be the equivalent of saving 91B driving miles a year
Between 2005-2009 the share of wealth of top 10% rose from 49% to 56%
Median worth of white family is 20 times that of Black and 18 times that of Hispanic
Total cost of new policies: Bush = $5.07T, Obama = $1.44T
Exxon profit up 41% or $10.68B even with recent oil spill
2025 fuel efficiency at 54.5MPG thanks to Obama
UN Food & Agriculture (FAO) lifestock farming generates 18% of greenhouse gas emissions while all transportation accounts for 13%
Reasons why meat generates greenhouse gasses: deforestation, manure (296 times more harmful than CO2), methane gas from cows (200L a day per cow)
Average person eats 176 pounds of meat a year

Monthly Questions:

People do realize that companies are sitting on their money rather than hiring? If we were to lower taxes right now with the debt crisis, do people really think companies would hire?
Why shouldn’t we have regulations? We have laws?

9:30am | URL: http://tmblr.co/ZQOKYy7n41CK

April 28, 2011

Politics Notes 4/2011

Paul Ryan’s bill that passed the house:

Independent economists say it doesn’t reduce the deficit
Balanced budget in 2040

Monthly Notes:

For every $1 spent on unemployment $1.61 is put into the economy, for every $1 spent on the Bush Tax Cuts only 32 cents is put into the economy
This country buys extra sugar to keep it at a high price
Audit of Pentagon spending finds $70B in waste
Median income of people 65+ only $19,000
$330B scammed out of taxes in 2010
For every $1 the IRS spends on tax evasion they get back $10
Defense spending up 81% since 2000, not including Afghanistan and Iraq wars
Tax cuts for the rich have not created the jobs Republicans have promised
Obama has caved in showing bipartisanship (public option, tax cuts for the rich, watered down financial reform)
Created 22M jobs in 1990’s
Ike cut defense 28%, Nixon cut defense 37%, Bush I cut defense 14%
Richest 400 people paid average of 16.6% in taxes where the average American paid 22.5%
Republicans think 5% of budget goes to NEA (reality .00004%)
Republicans think 25% of budget goes to foreign aid (reality .18%)
Americans on average buy 533 gallons of gas per year

Monthly Questions:

Republicans like to think we are the chosen ones, cause that worked out so well for the Jews?
25 years of cutting taxes for the rich and it hasn’t increased revenue; when do we give up that failed idea?
So Republicans don’t have to pay for their trillion dollar wars but Democrats have to pay for health care for everyone?
What’s going to happen to seniors when they run out of their $15,000 for Medicare?
Do Republicans think health care isn’t a basic human necessity?
What would this country look like without Social Security and Medicare?

11:27am | URL: http://tmblr.co/ZQOKYy4gqes-

Filed under: budget tax cuts taxes health care defense

February 28, 2011

Politics Notes 2/2011

Monthly political notes for February 2011:

Harvard study claims ending war on drugs could save $76.8 billion a year
3.2% of Americans on probation, in jail, or on parole since 2008
American incarcerates more of its citizens than any other country, 25% of entire worlds prison population
$70B a year spent on corrections
Top 1% = 34.6%, top 1-10% = 38.5%, bottom 90% = 26.9% (from 2007, note that super rich have gone up since the economy tanked)
US 42nd worst in Gini Coefficient
Richest 74 people made as much as the lowest 19 million people
1970 CEO made 74 times what the average worker made, 2005 = 465 times more, Japan CEO made 20 times what the average worker made
93% of Chamber Of Commerce spending for Republican candidates or against Democratic candidates in 2010
Republicans want to cut: AmeriCorps ($373M), family planning assistance, Corporation For Public Broadcasting spending ($531M), EPA by 18%, eliminate programs that help local police ($298M), EPA program that helps clean water, eliminate investment in highspeed rail ($53B), cut Amtrak budget by 14% ($224M), subsidies for the poor, Indian health care, road construction, no details on Congress’ own budget, cut NASA by 1%, FBI & US Marshals receive 4% increase, health research frozen at $31B, renewable energy programs by one half, weatherization programs terminated, cuts to WIC by $758M or 10%
Taxes at lowest level since 1950
Eisenhower was pro union, Reagan started union busting with firing air traffic controllers
In 2009 the top 5 most profitable companies were oil companies
House Democrats want $40B cut in oil subsidies over 5 years, Republicans say no
Under Clinton: richest .5% got tax increase of 3%, gas tax 3.4% increase, raised income on Social Security, all equaled more prosperity
Bush tax cuts on the wealthy, two unfunded wars = trying to clean up mess now
Defense budget $670B and doesn’t include nukes (they’re in energy)
A lot of stuff came from unions
Union decline bad for everyone except CEOs
In 1983 unions were 20.1%, now down to 12%
Top 400 people make as much as bottom 50%
Of 10 richest members of Congress (7 D’s and 3 R’s), all voted to extend the Bush tax cuts for the rich
From 2007-2009 Wall Street profits up 720%, unemployment up 102%, home equity down 35%

3:45pm | URL: http://tmblr.co/ZQOKYy3Kis6g

Filed under: taxes clinton unions prisons spending cuts defense

November 19, 2010

Politics Notes 11/2010

Monthly political notes:

Only 2% of the Tea Party knows Obama lowered taxes
Carter put solar panels on the White House, Reagan removed them & told American’s they didn’t need to sacrifice
How are the Republicans going to balance the budget when all they want is tax breaks?
The Democrats didn’t advertise what they did, that’s why they lost big in 2010 (HCR is popular when it’s explained)
Biggest shift of power since 1948
Why should Democrats compromise? They tried that before
Tax cuts WON’T give people jobs
USA is 90th in percentage of women in government
$895B for defense
4-5 times more incarceration per capita than any other country
China has 11,000 miles of high speed rail, USA = 0
$3.5T federal budget of USA
% debt raised: Carter 41.3%, Reagan 186.1%, Bush H 53.8%, Clinton 40.6%, Bush W 77.4%

Republican’s say they’re fiscally responsibile yet:

For adding $700B for tax cuts for the super rich
Against HCR bill which CBO and GAO said would reduce budget by $138B
Against defense cuts (2011 & 2012) which reports said could save $960B
For nukes (even though we have plenty) which costs $14B
Against cap & trade which would reduce budget by $19B
For cutting jobless benefits
Marco Rubio wants to add $989B to budget for reforming AMT & getting rid of the estate tax

2:10pm | URL: http://tmblr.co/ZQOKYy1WapCd

Filed under: defense taxes china hcr election tea party obama reagan carter clinton bush

October 20, 2010

Politics Notes 3/2010 - 10/2010

Here’s an archive of my politics notes from March 2010 to October 2010. Once a month I’ll try and update this to reflect new things I’ve learned.

Defense - US has 4.5% population, 20% of budget goes to defense, US spends more in defense than next 15 countries combined, 47% of world’s total military spending, US outspends Iran & North Korea 72 x 1
Reagan - raised taxes 6 times, for no nuclear weapons
How come the Catholic Church’s crimes not fall under Rico laws of organized crime?
Eisenhower - signed civil rights bill, massive government highway system, blew whistle on MIC, 92% tax rate on the rich, expanded the New Deal
20 years ago the top 6 banks had 17%, now they have 63%
Top 10% own 70% of wealth, top 1%’s taxes didn’t increase proportionally with income tripling, wall street made more than combined budget gaps of all 50 states, top 25 hedge fund managers made more than all NYC police & fire & teachers & NFL & MLB & NBA, paid only 15% vs 40% tax
Even if we don’t believe in climate change the rest of the world does and they make money off of it
OECD - 30 countries - US child poverty over 20% (double the average), widest gap between rich & poor, tax share 4th from bottom (4th lowest), used to be #1 in college, now #14, no child care & retirement & job retraining & college & sick & senior care like all the other countries
Republican party sued for vote caging in 1981
Reagan Racism - opposed 1964 civil rights act, opposed 1965 voting rights act, spoke of states rights (pro segregationist), opposed MLK day, sided with South African government
The 25 states with the highest lynching rates per capita also supported Bush in 2000 & 2004
No AA Republicans in congress since 2003
US unemployment at 9.3%, Germany at 8.2%
Europeans work 1,500 hours/year (US 2,300 hours/year)
Mosque near Ground Zero - treat Muslims different than everyone else, two blocks away, should government stop it, private property, private church, Muslims murdered during 9/11 (70 of them), to cave would be handing victory to terrorists, separation of church and state
Since 1990 - median income went up 20%, college costs rose 43-60%, housing rose 56%, health care rose 155%
40% of stimulus was a tax cut
US #10 in upward mobility behind France & Germany
Who are we taking America back from? Pretty sure we as Americans still have it
Each senator from CA represents 18.5 million people, from DE 200,000 people
No one accused Eisenhower of being socialist with 91% tax rate
During Bush tax cuts - median wage kept dropping
Clinton created 21 million jobs vs Bush 8 million
Where would demand come from if it wasn’t for the stimulus?
Friendly fire during wars - 21% WWII, 39% Vietnam, 59% Gulf War
Cost of wars - $3.7 trillion over next decade
All other countries who went into Iraq had openly gay military (except Iran)
Ten commandments - no mention of rape, incest, genocide
Good things Obama did - best month for the stock market since 1939, prevented depression, stopped banks on student loans, got out of Iraq (for most part), nuclear treaty with Russia
Bible - wrote by traveling herdsmen, how do they have knowledge of history of the world
Tarp & stimulus - saved more jobs than lost
Stimulus - 40% tax cuts, CBO says saved 1 million jobs, without stimulus unemployment would be at 13% instead of 9%, bailouts worked & we got our money back
Stimulus break down - $787 B, $288 B tax cuts, $275 stimulus, $233 food stamps & unemployment
$20 B Bush loaned to GM we’re not getting back
Reagan bailed out Chrysler
We’re spending twice per student than we did 20 years ago
Rich & Poor divide - top 20% received 49.4% all income, bottom 20% earned 3.4% of all income (ratio of 14.5 to 1 up from 13.8 to 1 in 2008, double 7.68 to 1 in 1968), 18 - 34 year olds largest jump in poverty, home ownership declined to 65.9% (67.3% in 2006)

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