The crowd awaits

I got this in an e-mail recently. Fill in the blank with the person of your choice.

With breathless anticipation, the crowd awaits the unveiling of the _____ statue.

Fair Tax

I normally stay away from political posts, but I came across an editorial I thought was interesting and felt was worth sharing. I'm not a Mike Huckabee fan. I didn't particularly care for him when he was Governor of Arkansas or when he ran for president in 2008. But the editorial he recently contributed to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette made sense to me.

Facts and the Fair Tax

Feel free to leave comments with your thoughts, but keep in mind I'm not a debater and will probably not attempt to counter your opinions if they differ from mine.

Think you know what's going on?

Last month I posted a Civic Literacy quiz to test your knowledge about the U.S. government. This week I received another fun quiz in an e-mail. I did a little better on this one, scoring a 10 out of 12. (and really shouldn't have missed one of those) It's a quick test, so click the link below and see how well you do. Keep in mind it relates to U.S. politics.

Political Quiz

On an unrelated note.... I watched Bolt this afternoon. A really cute movie! The animated dog in it reminded me of our Jed. (in looks, not intelligence!)

Guam

I normally stay away from posts having anything to do with politics, but I couldn't resist sharing this YouTube clip. It really struck me as funny, the best part about halfway into the clip.

In brief, it concerns one of our illustrious U.S. Congressmen questioning the head of the U.S. Pacific Fleet about the stationing of 5000 additional U.S. Marines and their families on the Pacific island of Guam. To read the full article, click here.

Andy Thomas

I received an e-mail today featuring this painting, “Grand Ol” Gang”, to which someone had added their own caption. The artwork was credited to an artist named Andy Thomas and included a link to his website. Fascinated by the painting in the e-mail, I checked out the site and was equally captivated by a corresponding work entitled “True Blues”.

Thomas’ artwork is primarily Western and Civil War based, but includes a few other interesting subjects. One in particular caught my attention. Check out the Pirate Party Prints!! Most of his work is available for purchase in various formats including a few as jigsaw puzzles.

I’m very tempted….

OPINION: A real inconvenient truth (about taxes)

I was sent the following editorial piece in an e-mail and thought I would share it here.

OPINION: A real inconvenient truth (about taxes)
Wednesday, Oct 15, 2008

By Warren Stephens

I have never written a column in one of our newspapers and really had no intention of doing so, but after watching the debate last Tuesday night I feel compelled to put some facts to paper so that readers can make an informed decision about this election. Given the dearth of facts in the current debate, this may not be my only foray into writing for publication! I want to make sure I make the proper disclosures about who I support in this Presidential Campaign. I am the co-finance chair for Arkansas for the McCain Campaign and an ardent free market capitalist. I believe social issues are best left to individuals and while I have strong beliefs about them, I will not interject them into my choice of a candidate. Economics and taxes, on the other hand, are NOT subject to interpretation. Supply and demand curves are real and they work. This column is an attempt to put facts in front of you, particularly as they relate to taxes and the "fairness" of our tax code.

Senator Obama is proposing a tax increase for small businesses and the top 5 percent of tax paying Americans. He says that he will give 95 percent of Americans a tax cut and he and Senator Biden say it is fair and the "patriotic duty" of the top 5 percent to pay more. Again, full disclosure, I am in the top 5 percent and probably the top 1 percent. The facts, as to who pays taxes, paint a different picture and, for whatever reason, Senator McCain will not use them. The tables below really say it all:

_______Share of total_________

Top 1 percent Income Taxes Paid

1990 14 percent 25 percent

2000 21 percent 37 percent

2005 21 percent 39 percent



________Share of total________

Top 5 percent Income Taxes Paid

1990 27 percent 44 percent

2000 35 percent 56 percent

2005 36 percent 60 percent

Source: Treasury Department, October 2007



These statistics are from the U.S. Treasury Department and they reveal a startling and seldom talked about FACT. The top 1 percent of wage earners in this country pay 39 percent of the income taxes paid, while the top 5 percent pay 60 percent. That's right, 60 percent of all income taxes are paid by the same people on whom Senators Obama and Biden want to RAISE taxes. What is more, the percentage paid by this group has increased since the so-called Bush tax cuts. This is a real inconvenient truth for the Obama Campaign.

In 2006, the lower 50 percent of wage earners had 12.5 percent of the income and paid 3.0 percent of federal income taxes. The 2006 statistics also reveal that the top 5 percent of U.S. taxpayers paid $616 billion in federal income taxes which was MORE than the remaining 95 percent of taxpayers' total of $408.1 billion. Our system could hardly be more weighted to having the wealthy pay more, yet that is precisely what Senator Obama proposes. I will reluctantly accept (for now) that in our society the top wage earners will pay more (in percentage terms) in taxes, but if Senator Obama wants to raise taxes, he should say so. As The Wall Street Journal has been saying, you cannot give a tax cut to people who do not pay taxes. Senator Obama's plan is a redistribution of income from those who pay taxes to those who do not. It is nothing more than the granddaddy of all welfare plans and voters need to know it. For Senators Obama and Biden to couch this issue as one of fairness and a "patriotic duty" is an attempt to deceive the American public as to the facts.

I am not afraid of Senator Obama becoming President because he is a bad person. Rather I am concerned about his policies and their effect on our economy both in the short and long term. Higher tax rates will discourage investment and capital formation and that is not good for anyone.



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Warren Stephens is president and CEO of Stephens Inc., one of the largest investment companies off Wall Street, and an owner of Stephens Media, which publishes newspapers in nine states, including Arkansas.

Should You Vote for Obama or McCain?

Your Issue Profile: 16% Obama, 84% McCain

The results are in, and John McCain is definitely your choice. You're probably not surprised. It's possible you've had your eye on McCain for years. Popular or not, you will likely stick by McCain. For you, it's a matter of principle. And besides, there's something exciting about rooting for the underdog!

Should You Vote for Obama or McCain?

The Second Amendment

The Supreme Court ruled today in favor of gun owners in America! An historic, but narrow victory (5-4).

This is an issue that has always been important to me. Call me a "redneck" if you will, but I live in a rural area and enjoy hunting and shooting sports. I personally own three rifles and two shotguns.

I realize most issues are never simple, gun control included. However, on the simplest level... most efforts at gun control just will not work. They only punish law-abiding citizens like myself. Criminals are not going to be affected by most gun laws.

It's rare you will find me posting something political or controversial on my blog. Whether you agree with me on gun control or not (and I'm sure most of you don't)... I couldn't let this victory pass without mention.