Our Excellent Adventures

This is a text only document authored by Daimler/Chrysler that gives marketing info, specs and lots of information on the 2009 Sprinter. If you are planning to purchase a Sprinter, this is a great read for you. If you own a Sprinter, likewise. I especially like the chronology part. Read here (pdf).

In today’s email.

Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:

The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.
The fifth would pay $1.
The sixth would pay $3.
The seventh would pay $7.
The eighth would pay $12.
The ninth would pay $18.
The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.

So, that’s what they decided to do. The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until on day, the owner threw them a curve. “Since you are all such good customers,” he said, “I’m going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20.” Drinks for the ten now cost just $80.

The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes so the first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free. But what about the other six men - the paying customers? How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his ‘fair share?’ They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody’s share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer. So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man’s bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay.

And so:
The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings).
The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33%savings).
The seventh now pay $5 instead of $7 (28%savings).
The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings).
The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings).
The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings).

Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to drink for free. But once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings.

“I only got a dollar out of the $20,” declared the sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man,” but he got $10!”
“Yeah, that’s right,” exclaimed the fifth man. “I only saved a dollar, too. It’s unfair that he got ten times more than I!”
“That’s true!!” shouted the seventh man. “Why should he get $10 back when I got only two? The wealthy get all the breaks!”
“Wait a minute,” yelled the first four men in unison. “We didn’t get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!”
The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.

The next night the tenth man didn’t show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn’t have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill!

And that, boys and girls, journalists and college professors, is how our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start drinking overseas where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.

DAVID R. KAMERSCHEN, PH.D.
PROFESSOR OF ECONOMICS
UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA

I’m not sure the professor above is real. If he is, he is the first economics person I have heard that makes sense about how reducing taxes should not just be about gaining more votes. If he is not real, the principle here still applies.

Now, lets go get a beer!

NEW BEDFORD — After the November election, Democrats will push for a second economic stimulus package that includes money for the states’ stalled infrastructure projects, along with help paying for healthcare expenses, food stamps and extended unemployment benefits, U.S. Rep. Barney Frank said Thursday.

In a meeting with the editorial board of The Standard-Times, Rep. Frank, D-Mass., also called for a 25 percent cut in military spending . . . Southcoast Today.com

When we finally do leave Iraq, the military needs rebuilding. Equipment is worn out and obsolete or just not there. Defense used to be a good way to stimulate the economy. Building and making equipment creates many jobs. That of course assuming we don’t give contracts to any foreign country, friend or foe, like we have in the past. Our government needs to be pro-military.

Just a thought . . . why don’t we take some of the folks on food stamps and unemployment (those who want to and can) and have them work on the “stalled infrastructure projects?” Can you say, “CCC?”- it certainly worked before.

Momentum increased Monday for a new economic stimulus package to help cash-strapped Americans as President Bush and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke threw their weight behind an idea they earlier opposed. AP thru Yahoo

President Bush will be remembered not for the Iraq War or the War on Terror but for ending capitalism in America. The government created this problem and their meddling will only make it worse in the long run. So, some banks go out of business - depositors loose nothing. So, stocks go down - they will come back up. So, some people lost their homes - pardon me, but perhaps they shouldn’t have had a home in the first  place.

All the economy’s problems are feeding off each other, creating a vicious cycle that Washington policymakers are finding difficult to break.

It is not up to Washington to break the cycle. Many, many economists and lots of Americans disagree with the governent view that if something is broken throw it money. Let the economy alone.

We’ve got enough to worry about . . . you know, no matter who is elected president taxes are going to go up. And they will keep going up if politicians keep giving the money away. If you don’t believe that call me, I’ve got some land on the dark side of the moon for sale.

In the future . . .
Last Person Working in America Dies
Washington - Leaving an unpaid tax bill of $450 gazillion dollars, the last working American died today after a long illness. Early reports say exhaustion may have contributed to the death but the real reason may never be known. With everyone else in America not working and waiting for more economic stimulus from Washington, this passing will put more pressure on the economy.

The Secretary of the Treasury announced the government would print more money to overcome this latest difficulty with the economy and blamed the death on the unwillingness of the deceased to share wealth with fellow Americans. He also commented that while past efforts represented investments that would have eventually made money for the taxpayer this would no longer be a consideration in future bail outs.

After his comments, the DOW rose 10 points to reach a week’s high of 298.