Memes aren't EZ

Today a friend posted a meme to Facebook that basically said to stop "giving" money to rich people because they horde it and don't stimulate the economy whereas a poor person would spend it with the result also enriching others.  This is my response:

Rich people "horde" their money? So rich people have a big vault, like Scrooge McDuck? Here, all my life, I believed that rich people put their money into real estate, rolling stock, stocks, bonds, banks, and credit unions. What do Wall Street and the banks do with that money? Why, they invest it so that others may buy homes, cars, and operate businesses.When Mr. Bloomberg buys a new yacht the shipbuilder pays hundereds of suppliers and workers, who generally like to be paid. I wasn't given my home, I had to borrow money to buy it. Thank God for the rich people who invest their money in mortgage banks so that I can avail my family of that service. The only "static" money of significance is the $20 bill we keep tucked in our wallets in case of emergency and those silver bars you have hidden under your bed (and once upon a time, you paid for those, too). Of course, money invested returns more money, because that's how smart people invest. I'd like to find these people who are "giving" money to rich people. Having said that, our society cannot afford to give unfair advantage to the wealthy and powerful at the expense of anyone else.But neither should we "eat the rich." That's been tried, and has never, ever, ever worked out well. A progressive and equitable tax system is an indespensible feature of a free economy.

While we're at it, let's include no-cost-to-student lunches in the operation of all public elementary and high schools.  Have an EZ day!

Business is not EZ

As a part-owner of a business, I find it distressing that so many people think that business owners are greedy and "rich." We employ people in several states, Ohio included. Of each and every dollar of company revenue, 42.4 cents go to direct salaries, 16 cents to employee benefits, our overhead (taxes and cost of doing business) averages about 37.9 cents on every dollar (higher in Ohio, lower in Texas.) On average, that leaves about 3.7 cents of every dollar in "profit." From that 3.7 cents we have to maintain and reinvest to grow and meet any contingencies. We are barely able to be price competitive now, despite making all the economies we can find. Any increase in taxes or costs MUST be passed along to our customers or we must close and eliminate the jobs we have slaved to create. If the increases cause us to become non-competitive, we may have the choice of moving to a lower cost environment. Here's a secret for you to share: No business has ever paid a penny in taxes. Businesses simply collect the taxes from their customers and pass them along to the government. Businesses aren't taxed -- people are taxed. George Soros is rich. Bill Gates and Warren Buffet are rich. Very few businessmen ever reach those pinnacles -- and if they do, it is because they have offered something of value to millions of working people. I personally don't agree with George Soros' politics, but I love his Progressive Insurance Company because they offer good service and value for the cost. That's good business, and good business is good for the economy and good for the Republic.