I'm Tired of Talking Points

I’m tired of people, left or right, endlessly repeating “talking points” that have little semblance to truth. It seems that a story always gets better from the telling. Talking points become embellished to the point that they become irrefutable dogma. One example is the GOP “talking point” that it would harm the economy if taxes on the wealthiest citizens or most profitable businesses were raised. The slim theory on which this anti-tax assertion is based is that these are the people who create jobs and taxing them more would slow job growth. If this were true, since taxes on this group haven’t been raised, there should be better job growth than we've seen lately. While it may be true that a tax increase that reduces the disposable income of a vast majority of the wage earning populace could adversely affect the economy, it remains to be seen that a tax increase on the income of the wealthiest would do likewise. A significant increase over the past several months in the price of gasoline has had the same effect to reduce the amount of disposable income available for purchases for commodities other than fuel that a general tax increase would have had. The effect of higher gas prices on the economy was not dire, but it probably has slowed the recovery. People have to some extent been able to avoid the effects of higher gas prices on their lifestyles through various means: driving less, opting for lower cost alternatives in other areas of consumption, and reducing savings/increasing debt. So, let’s get off “talking points” and let’s be truthful. Republicans should admit that they oppose increasing taxes on the rich, because they fear it will reduce the campaign contributions they receive from this segment of the electorate and it is contrary to their policy of starving government of tax revenue as a means of shrinking its role in society.