Is that a fiscal cliff ahead in the distance?

[Admiral Yi]

Hey Yi, are you part of the "Schumer Class"?

Yes.

[Razgovory]

Ah, I was just wondering.  You seemed to be using the term in contempt.

[Admiral Yi]

Ah, I was just wondering.  You seemed to be using the term in contempt.

I don't see the connection.

[derspiess]

IMO, raising taxes on the riches isn't going to hurt the economy a bit, since they only spend a fraction of their income anyway. 

Wow.  What's your line of work, again? 

[garbon]

IMO, raising taxes on the riches isn't going to hurt the economy a bit, since they only spend a fraction of their income anyway. 

Wow.  What's your line of work, again? 

USE IT OR LOSE IT!

[Admiral Yi]

Wow.  What's your line of work, again? 

He's right as far as he goes.  The rich invest more of their income than everyone else.

What he overlooks is that investment is the third leg of the holy Keynesian trinity.

[MadImmortalMan]

They'll pass on whatever costs to their customers. If they can't find a way to avoid them. Besides, taxing the rich isn't going to provide significant revenues anyway. It's symbolic.

[DGuller]

Wow.  What's your line of work, again? 

He's right as far as he goes.  The rich invest more of their income than everyone else.

What he overlooks is that investment is the third leg of the holy Keynesian trinity.

Right now the lack of spending, and not lack of investment, is what's holding the economy back.

[DGuller]

IMO, raising taxes on the riches isn't going to hurt the economy a bit, since they only spend a fraction of their income anyway. 

Wow.  What's your line of work, again? 

I'm not sure what part of what I said you're taking exception to, nor how it should related to my line of work.

[Admiral Yi]

Right now the lack of spending, and not lack of investment, is what's holding the economy back.

Investment *is* spending.  It's the "I" in Y=C+G+I+(X-M)

[Razgovory]

Ah, I was just wondering.  You seemed to be using the term in contempt.

I don't see the connection.

Most people don't refer to themselves using terms of contempt.  That's all.  Struck me as odd.

[DGuller]

Right now the lack of spending, and not lack of investment, is what's holding the economy back.

Investment *is* spending.  It's the "I" in Y=C+G+I+(X-M)

The math of that statement eludes me.

[Admiral Yi]

Most people don't refer to themselves using terms of contempt.  That's all.  Struck me as odd.

Sometimes I can't tell if you really don't get it or you do get it and just like to make bad arguments.

Occupy Wall Street proclaimed that We Are the 99%.  There is absolutely no doubt that I am a member of the 99%.  That doesn't mean that if I mock the slogan for being simplistic, wrong-headed, stupid, or all of the above that I am showing contempt for myself.  Exactly the same with the Schumer class.  I make much, much less than $200,000 a year.  That doesn't mean I am prevented from criticizing the Schumer/Obama construction of dividing the American people into "hard working middle class Americans" who earn less than that amount and fatcats and billionaires who earn more, and promising to tax only the latter.

What the hell do I have in common with someone making 200K?  Why should I feel great sympathy and empathy for him or her and animosity for someone making a little more?

[MadImmortalMan]

Investment *is* spending.  It's the "I" in Y=C+G+I+(X-M)

The math of that statement eludes me.

GDP equation

[Admiral Yi]

The math of that statement eludes me.

Can't tell if joking.  It's the basic macro national income identity.