Response to Anonymous Comments on Grover Norquist November 27 Blog

Ham on Wry offers apologies to readers for using the blog to reply to one person's comments, but has no other means of doing so, since comments arrive from blogger.com as a no-reply message.  To the person who wrote the comments, thank you for taking the time to send a comprehensive e-mail.  I will reply to those sections that warrant clarification.

Your second, third and fourth points are all related, so I address them as one.  Please note, I was referring to personal income taxes solely in that section.  Your point raises the issue of corporate (and I assume business) taxes, which does not pertain to my conclusion.  Personal taxes do not affect jobs creation, and I have researched that fully.  You asked if I meant to state public and private sectors rather than for-profit and not-for-profit.  No, I didn't.  Other than government jobs, which fall under the public sector, the for-profit businesses create the vast majority of jobs in this country.  Many emanate from entrepreneurial enterprises.  The not-for-profit sector includes some hospitals, charitable organizations, foundations, etc.  As for your use of "people:", I am referring to individuals, not corporations or other business classifications.  While the Supreme Court classifies corporations as people, which defies logic since they don't breathe, eat, marry, or attend school as a single entity, the tax code differentiates between personal, corporate and business taxes.  Consequently, when I wrote that raising taxes on people that have earned income of $1 million or greater, I was referring to personal income taxes.  FYI, Social Security Data show that 50% of Americans earned less that $26,364 in 2010, while 18% earned more than $1 million that year.

My blog was titled "Grover Norquist Still Spouting Nonsense on Meet the Press", so my conclusion about his statement with respect to his comments about Papa Bush having success in the Gulf War do relate to that title.  Norquist used that as proof that the only reason Bush was not re-elected had to do with a tax increase.

I, too, think national defense is important, but, unlike you, I feel no safer because we waged war in Iraq.  Hussein didn't threaten us, nor did he attack us, nor did he have WMD's.  Thus, I think it's outrageous that we spent over $1 trillion in direct costs and billions more in lost equipment and money that somehow disappeared over eight years and nine months.

You questions why I care who funds Americans for Tax Reform.  With a name like that, I want to see a cross representation of Americans in support of it.  The only contributors I find are foundations and corporations.  I'd like to see a list of individual contributors.  If individuals don't contribute, the name of the organization should change.  You also wondered why I have difficulty with Norquist's influence in Congress.  He is not an elected member of Congress, and, therefore, can't be removed from office.  He threatens Republicans with losing a bid for a seat in Congress, if they don't sign the pledge or rescind it later. Norquist stated it wasn't a pledge to him; it was a pledge to the American people.  I know many Americans who asked for no such pledge. Warren Buffett among them.

You said you'd like to be a millionaire some day, and I hope you succeed.  It is different when you want to make life better for your family than it is if you use money to sway political decisions.  Class warfare is a term I find divisive,.  It's employed anytime one suggest something that the uber rich might do, and my comments don't fault people for being rich.  I do take issue with people who have gained wealth by risking other's money and suffering no consequences.  Taxpayers pay dearly for that kind of personal gain.

Again, thank you for your comments.