Time to Call 'Bullshit' on Herman Cain's 9-9-9 Nonsense

Please run for President? :)

ABSOLUTELY!
Do we really need to wear clothes? Why spend time weaving our own cloth? This would only attract those pesky rich corporate billionaires who would want to capitalize on y/our weaving skills. Let's just go nude!!! Sounds like a plan. Hey, this 0-0-0 tax plan sounds pretty good to me. Wonder how often the Oligarchs will come from their Ivory towers to pay alms to the poor and needy? I've got my tin cup dusted off and ready to be filled. [Oh, I'll cut your grass if you'll rehang my broken-down door.]
Actually, I've often wondered, what would the rich do if they woke up one morning to discover that all the poor suddenly disappeared...overnight. GASP!!! hahahaha!

I don't have the facts to back this up, but I happen to also believe that Cain is probably an idiot and that his whole candidacy is planned and orchestrated to distract people away from the fact that 2/3rd of corporations in the US hide all their income offshore and don't pay any taxes at all.

I agree. Herman Cain is not a serious candidate. I'm sure he's as shocked by his rise in the polls as everybody else is. He's probably saying: 'OMG! What in the heck have I gotten myself into?' He's got to keep going to make it look good. He can't take a dive because that would be too obvious. So he does things like: 999 plan, says "Blacks are brainwashed", or "I don't want to be called African American. I want to be called 'Black American", ...I'd build a fence with electric wires and put a sign on the other side saying that this fence will kill you... and "I don't know what you mean by 'neocon'. I know what a conservative is. This statement is what really cinched it for me (my reason for believing he's not serious) "Blacks are still living on White plantations."
Herman Cain is a businessman. He's collecting lots and lots of money. When his campaign falters, he (like Sarah Palin) will take the money and run. I feel sorry for those who send their hard earned money to this cunning individual. If he doesn't pay for his wrongs, his children will.

The problem with the tax code is unnecessary complexity which is the result of lobbying by various business interests. Some complexity IS necessary as many transactions are complex and need to be tracked, and taxed appropriately.

What is NOT the problem with the tax code is that it is progressive... somewhat.

The beef I have with you conservatives is that you take a good idea (simplify the tax code) and try to roll it through with an ideological change (by creating a flat tax without any deductions).

Further, you want to engage in ANOTHER ideological battle by making it harder to increase the rate... how is that fair legislation if it is easier to lower rates than it is to raise them?

You are trying to cram through 3 different ideas, only one of which makes any sense, and you are surprised that no one takes you seriously?

He doesn't want to repeal income tax or change the code. He wants to add a national sales tax in addition to the income tax.

One of the problems with the tax code is that it IS progressive. I don't agree with Marx.
A flat tax is not an ideological change but a legislative one to simplify the tax code and remove any "loopholes", credits and deductions while making it fair and equally applicable to everyone. If you consider it an ideological change I can only assume that you are wedded to the concept of a progressive tax system and really not interested in simplifying the tax code.
As far as increasing the rate vs lowering the rate I apologize for the confusion. Perhaps I should have worded it, "limit the amount and frequency the percentages could be changed". Frankly the concept of lowering the rates, knowing the appetite for confiscation the government has, did not occur to me. The rates would have to stay the same so that some degree of certainty could apply although a lower rate is easier to plan for than a sudden escalation.

If we change our income tax system from the present one to a flat tax than it is changed. Deductions, credits, carryforwards, etc.,etc. would all disappear.
The income tax is different from a sales tax. One is a tax on income, the other is a tax on consumption, two very different things. This is the problem with the Buffet thing. Capital gains are not taxes on income. ONe is reported on a Form 1099, the other on a Form W2. Taxes, SS and MED are generally taken out on a W2 but you don't really see any taxes taken on a 1099. Granted under both money is removed from our wallet and put into the government wallet but that is the only similarity.

"If you consider it an ideological change I can only assume that you are wedded to the concept of a progressive tax system and really not interested in simplifying the tax code."

Well that tells me a few things: Your assumptions suck and so does your reading comprehension.

I am all for simplifying the income tax code, but simplify doesn't mean flat tax or fair tax or whatever regressive system you Forbes babies cry about all the time.

What's wrong with a progressive tax code?

If you look at our current tax code it is effectively progressive for only the average american.

The effective tax rate climbs steadily and then drops off like a rock around $1,000,000 in income.

If you want to tax fairly, a good start is to have a minimum tax on capital gains of a certain amount (tagged to inflation, of course).

If you want to tax simply, then then forget cap gains altogether and label EVERYTHING as income. How about that for simplification?

I'd like for Herman to speak more on the 'invisible taxes' that he wants to get rid of. From what I've heard (according to Herman), he would get rid of those invisible taxes. For example: The loaf of bread - the flour company would pay no taxes. The trucking company that delivers the flour would pay no taxes. I guess the packaging company would pay no taxes. That would get rid of the invisible taxes, therefore making the loaf of bread less expensive. Herman Cain has not addressed the issue of the price of items going up or down because of bad weather! Bread prices, coffee and other food item prices often depend on good or bad weather which has nothing to do with 'invisible taxes'. So customers can still take a big hit. How does he address that problem? Hmmm!

Especially Billionaire Tea Party financiers.....

Of course its more of the same

Exactly, Vic.

Once you put on the Rep uniform, that's what it becomes, a different way to screw the working class.

Yes! The slices for the 1% will have the finest ingredients money can buy and 99% will be topped with cat turds, glass, and rat poison.

I agree the rethugs will never give him the nomination.

Ahhhh Good one!

Agreed. Also, once the Chamber of Commerce figures out that this will effectively bankrupt all retail stores, his 9-9-9 plan will be killed by fellow Republicans long before the election. If, by some slender miracle the tea party is able to counteract their rapidly plummeting approval rate (now at 27% and dropping) and he did somehow manage to get elected to office, he would then have to take this plan through congress and the senate (as well as the supreme court) where it has a snow balls chance in hell of passing his own party let alone pass muster with the Democrats. Too bad, this was the funniest platform I've heard to date. It must have to do with the Laffer curve that the Tea Party keeps blathering about, but I've been laughing about it ever since I heard this.

It is kind of funny. Good comment!

Agree with you, Dagum. Completely insane.

Even Bachmann called it 666 and she's not very smart.

Either members of the media can't count or they're, as one of them put it this morning, "having too much fun" with the Cain campaign. It's a damn shame they get paid so handsomely for propagandizing instead of actually reporting news.