Vanadium 50 said:
OK, raise it from 2% to 100%. Make it illegal for someone to own more than $7.2M in assets. Now that's $3.5T. That would pay off one year's deficit and allow us to reduce the debt by 10%.
Might work for a year and that first 10%. Afterwards, all the rich folks would have fled the country to protect what they have left, at which point you wouldn't get another drop out of them and would be in a worse position than leaving them well enough alone.
The problem is spending. We have all these wonderful-sounding do-little programs that any business with half a brain would never throw money at because it doesn't do a thing for the bottom line.
We're not finding our way out of this paper bag until we start measuring performance against the amount of money thrown at a problem. Dept of Education gets billions yet are school children are further behind than every. Is the solution more money? No. The solution is found among those kids who rise to the top regardless of how much money their school district gets. Government money can't fix families who don't read to their kids, who don't encourage their kids to go the extra mile, and who don't even stay together as families. Divorce has a huge effect on kids. Government money can't fix changes in culture where dumbing down is considered "cool." It can't fix the negative effects of Hollywood who's characters all seem to be able to magically rise from the dregs of life into dreamland in 90 minutes. "If they can do it, I can do it" think our youth. No, they can't.
The path to riches is not just years of hard work, it's knowing where to invest your time, and where to cut it. The government is one of the poorest examples, as they throw money at everything, often with much hope, not to mention a clue, as to what effect it'll have in the long run. They're more concerned about greasing the squeaky wheel so it won't effect next year's elections.