3/9     http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/forbes_billionaires
        Number of Billionaires to a record 793. Who says Bushconomy sucks?
        \_ I think that includes foreigners, who sure benefitted from
           our spending and more spending.
        \_ I say it sucks and I'll explain to you.  Bush uses my tax dollars
           to go fund his illegitimate war and go and take all the spoils
           for himself.  Plus I will almost certainly be paying higher
           taxes to offset his record deficit that he's created.  So
           tell me how I benefit from this again????  Bush better be planning
           to pay back the "loan" that he's taken out from the American
           people, cuz I sure as hell don't want to be paying extra taxes
           cuz of the stupid debt he's racked up at our expense.
           \_ Just like when we had Reagan as a President, we owe him a debt
              we can never repay ...
              \_ You must be on crack if you believe Reagen was responsible
                 for the economic boom of the 90's.  If you can explain how
                 Reagen administration was more responsible than, say, the
                 rise of the Internet for the 90's boom, I'll give you a
                 Nobel prize.
                 \_ Who commercialized the Internet?
                 \_ In a way the defeat of Soviet Communism and the resulting
                    demilitarization supported the boom of the 90s. Reagan
                    embraced and executed an active policy to defeat, instead
                    of contain, the USSR. This policy, combined w/ economic
                    conditions in the USSR, largely worked.
                    Specifically WRT supply side economics, I agree that it
                    is not clear that this economic policy resulted in the
                    boom of the 90s.
                    \_ complete BS.  Soviet would of fell apart on its own
                       weight regardless.
                       \_ It is very hard to say that the USSR was in such
                          bad shape in the 80s that it would have died w/o
                          Zero Option, &c. I am not saying Reagan single
                          handedly killed TEH COMMIE, just that his policies
                          were a contributing factor.
                       \_ It isn't so important that they collapsed, per se,
                          but what they became after.  Had they been crushed
                          by anything other than the US their odds of becoming
                          a more democratic nation would have been zero, simply
                          replacing one dictatorship with another.  There were
                          a few attempted non-democratic coups that went no
                          where.  Some historical what-if for you: Had the
                          Nazi's survived WWII and into the 90's, would the
                          Soviets have still collapsed?  Likely so.  Would it
                          have turned into a more western nation?  You decide.
        \_ 1) Is that inflation injusted and yes 2) "Bushconomy" is VERY good
           for rich people, I don't think anyone will disagree with that.
           The disagreement is over whether good for billionaires == good
           for everyone else.
           \_ You're not getting it. If you argue with a wealthy conservative,
              he/she will say that if everyone else's income didn't increase
              it is because they didn't work as hard [as the wealthy folks].
              In the conservative world, YOU are self-reliant and you, and
              no one else, can make yourself wealthy. The rich conservatives'
              argument is that if you tax the rich more, then you'll fall
              under socialism (which Ronald Reagan declares as EVIL!!!) and
                    \_ Socialism *is* evil.
              no one will have incentives to work hard anymore. So, fuck
                    \_ See "Collapse of Soviet Union under own weight" above.
              social programs, cut taxes, and faggots need to go to hell.
              That is the platform of the American conservatives.
              \_ You've clearly never talked to a conservative, rich or
                 otherwise.  Would you like to hear what the "extremist
                 ultra liberal" platform is?  You know it wouldn't be difficult
                 to paint your beliefs into a tidy little strawman and then
                 knock it down, so why do you do that to other people?
              \_ There is something to be said that a grim socialist
                 completely state controlled economy is the bane to
                 economic growth, witness eastern bloc countries before
                 the fall of the soviet union.  current conservatives
                 in power though appear to want to take everything to the
                    \_ There are no conservatives in power at the moment.
                       There are pro-business Republicans.  If the Dems had
                       put up something better than that mindless
                       Republican-lite playboy they would have won in 2004.
                       Stop running stupid candidates so we can have better
                       candidates from both parties running.  If you run
                       Hillary in 2008 she'll lose and we'll get another 4-8
                       years of pro-Business Republicans again.
                 complete logical extreme with no oversight on business
                 by government in even the most egregious examples.
                 \_ http://www.nowartax.org can help you out with your tax
                    problems