Everyone should watch Bill Moyers Journal from last night. Both of his guests last night spoke to the problems of today and how we got there. First up was David Cay Johnston of the NYT. The second was Harvey J. Kaye a professor at the University of Wisconsin Green Bay. Their books that they discussed last night are now on my list to read in full. Mr. Johnston's book Free Lunch: How the wealthiest Americans enrich themselves at government expense (and stick you with the bill) exposes grants subsidies and other ways we pay to support the likes of Donald Trump, Geo. Steinbrenner, and a former Texas business man, turned Governor, turned (stole) President, George W. Bush. I'll get to Mr Kayes book after the flip.

To finish my introductions Prof. Kaye's book is "Thomas Paine and The Promise of America." Paine is one of my favorite people in history because "Commons Sense" is the 1770's version of a viral video. So let's start with the link: http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/01182008/watch.html
I never understood why we all include links since we all know how to google.
The first guest up was David Cay Johnson, of the New York Times. Not only did he capture my attention he stoked the fire of political activism in me. We all know that our government is out of control with spending. While I suspected that there was something rotting in the potato bin Mr. Johnston has gathered the facts that bear out those suspicions.
In the interview he highlights certain people who are benefiting, more like feeding from the government tit. First up is Warren Buffet. I like many people cheer when Sen. Obama talks about his (Warren Buffet's)tax rate and his secretary's and how he's going to change that. I have always opposed lower tax rates for capital gains for the reasons we have heard over and over again. It rewards wealth over work. Years ago when Maryland first started a lottery a friend who is a CPA was explaining how through investment and lower capital gains rate we could comfortably live on the bottom tier prize of $1,000,000.00 paid out at a rate of $50,000.00. Back then I thought heck just the $50K/year would be enough to live comfortably. My wife and me make more than that now and it is a struggle.
Here is what Mr. Johnston says about Warren Buffet:

BILL MOYERS: You mentioned Warren Buffet. I was impressed in the book that you do name names. And so let me mention some of the names that you talk about in the book. Warren Buffet. Everyone respects him as the world's greatest investor. Yet he's in your book on free lunches.

DAVID CAY JOHNSTON: In Several places.

BILL MOYERS: Several places.

DAVID CAY JOHNSTON: He got a $665 million interest-free loan for the utility he has in the Midwest. Now--

BILL MOYERS: From? He got the loan from?

DAVID CAY JOHNSTON: From the taxpayers. Now, imagine for a moment that the house you live in today, you bought it 24 years ago and you agreed to pay the price then. And now you've got to pay back with no interest half the price in the dollars you agreed to in 1924. You could be rich just from that alone?

BILL MOYERS: But those are the rules. Buffet was doing something legal.

Pretty disheartening don't you think. And yesterday when Bush announced his stimulus package the rebate had grown from $600 per tax payer to $800 per tax payer. OK you want to give me back some of the money you took from me fine. But then as usual came the tax breaks for corporation. "Free Lunch" goes into detail about tax breaks, etc. Two more quick quotes on the subject of tax breaks.

BILL MOYERS: Let me read you this quote from one of your critics, Larry Kudlow of NATIONAL REVIEW online and CNBC. He wrote this a couple of years ago after in response to something you had reported in the New York Times about how Bush's tax cuts on dividends and capital gains had helped people with the highest incomes. Quote: "These entrepreneurs use their God-given talents within the Reagan-esque free market framework that deregulated, slashed tax rates, and provided the first strong dose of economic incentives since the 1920s. A rising economic tide over the last 20 years has lifted living standards, productivity, and employment throughout America. Everyone got richer with a full $39 trillion in new wealth created during this period. Fair?

DAVID CAY JOHNSTON: No. Not accurate either. First of all a rising tide lifts all boats unless you're in the dinghy tied to the dock. And then you get swamped. The poor America, and it's not like being poor in the third world, but the poor America are worse off. Most Americans have seen their incomes stagnate or decline slightly. People have fewer fringe benefits. They have less in retirement. They have an enormous amount of debt. For every additional dollar since 1980 the people have gotten in equity in their homes, they've taken on $2 of debt. That's not a prescription for getting well off.

Entrepreneurs? Entrepreneurs are people who are going to perform no matter what. And we had our greatest economic growth when we had much higher tax rates. You want entrepreneurs. You need entrepreneurs to have a good society. I don't have any problem with entrepreneurs. But we need to have a system that also fairly distributes-- and government rules affect the distribution of this; it is not in a vacuum-- the burdens of society and the benefits of society. And so when we have people who make billion dollar a year incomes and pay 15 percent taxes and janitors who pay the same tax rate and school teachers who pay a 25 percent tax rate, something's amiss.

This next quote is near and dear to my heart because I grew up watching Johnny U lead the Baltimore Colts to victory after win after victory. So when they came to us in Maryland and said "build it and they will come" most every football fan in Baltimore said go for it.

BILL MOYERS: You remember what Art Modell said back in 1996 when he was manipulating Baltimore and Cleveland into a bidding war for his football team? He was asked how he felt about taking money for his out of-- for his own pocket at the very same time library funds were being cut. Remember what he said?

DAVID CAY JOHNSTON: Oh, yes. The pride of having a professional baseball team is worth more than 30 libraries.

We were also told that the team would make so much money for us in tax revenue that not only would we not have to close libraries, we could build those thirty libraries.
Again the segment is worth the time. I have the book on order from my neighbor the Anne Arundel County Public Library.
The second segment with Harvey Kaye had its moments too. First, as I said in the intro Thomas Paine's "Common Sense" was like a viral video, it was read by plantation owners, blacksmiths, silversmiths and farmers in the field. Washington, you know the first George W, often quoted Paine to inspire his troops. He was, for many the person who inspired the revolution.

BILL MOYERS: And you say he was-- you say he turned Americans into radicals. And, quoting you, "We have remained radicals at heart ever since." What do you mean by that?

HARVEY J. KAYE: You know, I hesitated to say that when I wrote it. And there was a friend of mine who was visiting with his wife. And his wife read the little bit of the book that I'd written. And she said, "Why don't you say what you really want to say." I said, "What do you mean?" She goes, "You know what you really want to say is that Paine made us all into radicals." And I said, "That's right. That's what I want to say." And I stuck that in and I felt comfortable with it. And what I meant is that, look, working men's parties, free thinkers, abolitionists, suffragists, populists, socialists, progressives, peace activists, Paine's memory was never forgotten, even though we didn't always find him on the mall in Washington, in monuments elsewhere. But you know, Andrew Jackson-- I think it was Jackson made the remark. He said, "Paine doesn't need a monument, you know? His words will forever be his monument." And I bet if everyone tonight gets themselves a copy of Common Sense and at bed time starts to read it, they'll feel like they're reading a friend. Someone who's speaking directly to them.

I for one have never given up my radicalism. In fact it is what keeps me going. I want another revolution. One that gives back to the ordinary citizen that which has been stolen from us by the people in Mr. Johnston's book.
"These are times that try men's souls.", Paine wrote. Well my soul is tired of being tried and so is my patience. For that matter so is my back. So I have suggested some reading material, the books by Misters Johnston and Kaye are worth the read I suspect. But "Common Sense" is probably even more important to read now because we do have an aristocracy in this country and I'm tired of supporting them.