@Jacob: Yeah, that makes sense I guess. I was figuring in an unrealistic level of efficiency, e.g. employees are hired only when absolutely necessary. Interesting. I still wonder if there's some way of working the tax code around this. I should probably read the actual tax code some day when I'm really bored.
@JohnnyH: I'm not sure what you mean by regulatory capture. I agree that "Money has a gravity to it, as long as their is no disruption larger masses will grow more than smaller ones." Where we may disagree is that I think disruption of that flow, at least somewhat, is beneficial.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_i ... inequality
Interesting that the countries involved in the sovereign debt crisis all had high Gini measures. Vast differences in wealth tend to precede economic disaster.
And by the way, I don't advocate for a bigger government. Trust me, I see the inefficiency and waste in the government daily. I'm all for a much smaller government with less responsibilities and more states' rights. But a small government can still be funded in a progressive manner. It makes the most sense economically and it makes sense morally (in utilitarian terms at least).
Romney: zero capital gains tax for middle class
-
Spartan_Warrior
- Posts: 1659
- Joined: Fri Dec 02, 2011 1:24 am
As far as Gen Y goes (I thought Gen Y = Millenials too, are they different now?), I believe I have the dubious honor of belonging to that group. I think like every generation, it has its good and bad sides, and its good and bad apples.
The original Occupy Wall Street--not the repackaged, rebranded "pay my student loans Obama" version--showed some hope that people are waking up to the fact that their interests are not being served by the current system. OWS was inarguably a Gen Y movement, and I think it really highlights the good and bad of the generation--frustrated, unheard voices, truly struggling to survive, yet so ingrained into the system/culture that they're ultimately perpetuating their own suffering (see: consumeristic "cell phone envy", etc).
Ultimately I feel sorry for my generation and thankful for being so well off in comparison to most. Look at the rates of household formation. All down. You think kids are living in their parents' basements and putting off marriage because they have a choice? And you can't blame them for getting a degree, even if they can't afford it and go into debt. Blame corporations for making a rubber stamped degree a requirement to get in the door. A college degree is the new ($30k) high school diploma.
Likewise, as far as working at McDonalds, anyone really think they want to? Maybe some are pathological losers, but I'm sure many really can't find anything else. I survived selling things on ebay and writing articles online for $20 a pop for months after I graduated before I found a professional job. Had it gone on much longer I would've looked for a mcjob myself. In my senior year the economy tanked. I had no idea I'd be graduating to nothing but Wal-mart jobs.
I wouldn't write off Gen Y. I also see a lot of good things, perhaps even strengthened by hardship. Adaptability, "being green", cooperative living, political activism. Hmm, now that I think of it, many of these were ideals of the baby boomers in their youth...
By the way, @Haplo, I don't know anyone my age that liked Bush! That actually made me laugh... and then wonder where you're from.
I must side with secretwealth on this one. Humanity as a whole is way better off today than it was at any point in history.
The original Occupy Wall Street--not the repackaged, rebranded "pay my student loans Obama" version--showed some hope that people are waking up to the fact that their interests are not being served by the current system. OWS was inarguably a Gen Y movement, and I think it really highlights the good and bad of the generation--frustrated, unheard voices, truly struggling to survive, yet so ingrained into the system/culture that they're ultimately perpetuating their own suffering (see: consumeristic "cell phone envy", etc).
Ultimately I feel sorry for my generation and thankful for being so well off in comparison to most. Look at the rates of household formation. All down. You think kids are living in their parents' basements and putting off marriage because they have a choice? And you can't blame them for getting a degree, even if they can't afford it and go into debt. Blame corporations for making a rubber stamped degree a requirement to get in the door. A college degree is the new ($30k) high school diploma.
Likewise, as far as working at McDonalds, anyone really think they want to? Maybe some are pathological losers, but I'm sure many really can't find anything else. I survived selling things on ebay and writing articles online for $20 a pop for months after I graduated before I found a professional job. Had it gone on much longer I would've looked for a mcjob myself. In my senior year the economy tanked. I had no idea I'd be graduating to nothing but Wal-mart jobs.
I wouldn't write off Gen Y. I also see a lot of good things, perhaps even strengthened by hardship. Adaptability, "being green", cooperative living, political activism. Hmm, now that I think of it, many of these were ideals of the baby boomers in their youth...
By the way, @Haplo, I don't know anyone my age that liked Bush! That actually made me laugh... and then wonder where you're from.
I must side with secretwealth on this one. Humanity as a whole is way better off today than it was at any point in history.
-
Spartan_Warrior
- Posts: 1659
- Joined: Fri Dec 02, 2011 1:24 am
-
George the original one
- Posts: 5406
- Joined: Wed Jul 28, 2010 3:28 am
- Location: Wettest corner of Orygun
Going off on a tangent with the Boomer/GenX/GenY thing... do you youngsters really believe you are the first to have troubles finding work after graduating from college? Sheesh, I graduated college in 1986 and it wasn't until 1990 that I had a steady job! I strung together technical writing contracts and odd jobs and electrical design and GIS mapping and a little programming for 4 years because technical writing careers kept drying up. About half of my friends were regularly laid off before the '90s let their careers take off.
Seriously, it's not at all unusual that it takes time to land a "real job" after graduating from college. And once you do, it's not unusual to switch careers within a few years when you realize that what you're doing isn't working for your finances or goals.
Seriously, it's not at all unusual that it takes time to land a "real job" after graduating from college. And once you do, it's not unusual to switch careers within a few years when you realize that what you're doing isn't working for your finances or goals.
-
secretwealth
- Posts: 1948
- Joined: Mon Jun 27, 2011 3:31 am
George, of course not, but how much student loan debt did you have and how difficult was it to get that debt discharged through bankruptcy? I graduated in the late 1990s, just before tuition went through the roof, and it took me years to find a job.
Still, because I'm not a boomer, I'm not so selfish that I can't see how it's even harder for people who graduate in the late 2000s and thereafter, because they have higher debt (a statistical fact), because unemployment rates are higher (another statistical fact), because boomers aren't retiring when they should because of a lifetime of consumption (maybe more truth than fact), and earning power has plummeted for the lucky few who CAN get a job (more fact than truth here). Add to that that Millennials are more tech savvy, smarter, faster and more efficient, and more creative than boomers (okay, none of this is fact, but it is certainly my experience), and yeah...I'd say they're getting screwed left and right. And not in a good way.
Still, because I'm not a boomer, I'm not so selfish that I can't see how it's even harder for people who graduate in the late 2000s and thereafter, because they have higher debt (a statistical fact), because unemployment rates are higher (another statistical fact), because boomers aren't retiring when they should because of a lifetime of consumption (maybe more truth than fact), and earning power has plummeted for the lucky few who CAN get a job (more fact than truth here). Add to that that Millennials are more tech savvy, smarter, faster and more efficient, and more creative than boomers (okay, none of this is fact, but it is certainly my experience), and yeah...I'd say they're getting screwed left and right. And not in a good way.