Let's Just Stop and Think About This

So, I was playing Sudoku while watching Wheel of Fortune on NBC, mainly just to kill time until the Olympics started.  During one of the commercial breaks, I saw a brand new ad by President Obama.  In this ad, the voice over guy is saying that Mitt Romney only paid 14% in taxes on his $20 million dollar income in 2010 and that this is likely less than you pay.  The ad goes on to say that Romney wants to give tax breaks to millionaires while taxing you more. 

There is so much in here.  First, Obama and his team are again playing the "class card" pitting us "commoners" against the "elites."  Further, while this ad is not wrong, it's somewhat misleading.  A quick google search uncovered this article from the Tuscon Sentinel.  First if you look at strictly income tax, the ad is a lie...only 3% of the population pays a higher income tax rate than Mitt Romney.  However, if you include payroll taxes, then the ad is correct, as most of Romney's income is from dividends and capital gains, so he doesn't pay the typical payroll taxes that most people do pay.  Also, in fairness, Mitt Romney does pay a lower tax rate than most people at his income level, largely due to the fact that he donates a significant portion of his income to charity.

Finally, the ad concludes with the point that Romney's tax policy as currently stated will eventually have to result in tax increases on the middle class, but doesn't explain why.  Again, a little digging on google is required, but you can quickly find out that a report by the Tax Policy Center determined that Romney would have to eliminate certain tax breaks that middle class families rely on in order to 1) reduce income tax rates across the board and 2) remain revenue neutral.  Most of the media is reporting this as positive for Obama, but again, a little googling and you can find that Romney's plan isn't specific enough to really draw the conclusions that were drawn.  Forbes has a nice article on this that I think is somewhat fair, though I'll admit Forbes is typically right leaning.

Ok, this is gonna be a long blog, because it took all that background to get to my main point.  The President's point in this ad is obviously to get you 1) mad that Romney pays less in taxes than you (again, debatable) and 2) fearful that Romney's policies will result in higher taxes on you.  Frankly, the President is doing you and I, all of us really, a disservice by this type of campaigning.  In fairness the Romney camp is doing the same thing with some of their advertising, but given that I am conservative, Obama's ads tend to get my ire up more so I'm focusing on this ad.  There are so many conversations we should be having based on the material just in this ad, but both parties have decided that we're too stupid or lack the attention span to hold these conversations.

Here are two examples of real policy debates we should be having based solely on the material in this political ad:

1)  Is it right to tax investment income at a lower rate than earned income?  That's contributing to Romney's tax rate being so low.  I think that would be a good debate to have in the country.

2)  Our tax code is screwed up.  Who among us wouldn't do what Romney does and take all the deductions possible?  We all do it...leaving money on the table is not smart, especially in this economy.  How are we gonna fix the tax code to make it more simple and more fair?  That's a debate some have tried to have in the past and they get vilified...see Steve Forbes and the flat tax.

Sadly folks, we've brought this upon ourselves.  We've become a generation of sound bytes.  If you can't get it in 10 seconds, it's not worth it.  Both candidates for President are just campaigning to us in the way that is most effective, and that's a sad commentary on the state of our society. 

We can change this though, and we have to start now, because I believe our nation is on the precipice.  My personal belief is that if we tip one way, we go the way or Western European Socialism, but if we tip the other way, we can recapture what has made the United States the greatest nation in the history of the world.  But, we can only do this if we get informed and start thinking about these issues. 

How can we do this?  Well, here's what has worked in my life.  First off, stop listening to or reading only one news source.  I had to stop listening to Rush Limbaugh, as all it did was made me mad at the other side and being angry prevented my from thinking about what it is I really believe.  Turns out, I believe most of what Limbaugh spouts, but now that I don't listen, I'm capable of articulating it in my own words.  I've also started reading multiple news sources, especially on controversial issues.  You often have to go to Foxnews and MSNBC or CNN to get the entire story, since the new agencies are very biased one way or the other. 

The second thing I've had to do is not let myself react emotionally.  If I do that, I've failed.  Instead, if something hits me emotionally, I stop and think about why that is.  Then I analyze the issue and determine where I really stand. 

Finally, we all have to do some research and get informed.  I spent 40 minutes tonight on this blog and researching.  That's not much time really, and now I'm much smarter on this issue. 

I'm hoping this doesn't come across as preachy.  I'm hoping that it will come across as a plea for all of us, Democrat, Republican or Independent, to get informed and start having meaningful debate on the issues, rather than just reacting with hate or anger towards the other side.  That's the only way we're gonna fix this mess.