It's just a tax cut for the rich?

Sometimes politicians, journalists and the liberal left exclaim; "It's just
a tax cut for the rich!" and it is just accepted to be fact. But what does
that really mean? Just in case you are not completely clear on this issue, I
hope the following will help. Please read it carefully. Let's put tax cuts
in terms everyone can understand.

Suppose that every day, ten men go out for dinner 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: a.. The first four men (the poorest) would pay
nothing.

b.. The fifth would pay $1.
c.. The sixth would pay $3.
d.. The seventh would pay $7.
e.. The eighth would pay $12.
f.. The ninth would pay $18.
g.. The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.

So, that's what they decided to do. The ten men ate dinner in the restaurant
every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one 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 meal by $20." Dinner 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. The first four would still
eat 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 eat their meal. So, the restaurant 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).

a.. The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33% savings).
b.. The seventh now paid $5 instead of $7 (28% savings).
c.. The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings).
d.. The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings).
e.. The tenth (the richest) now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings).

Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to
eat 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 me!" "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 dinner, so the nine sat down
and ate without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered
something very 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 eating overseas
where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.

H/T Ted


Shared with the My Fellow McCain Victory 08 Bloggers at
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