sometimes Democracy really sucks
Voters in my city just voted by 62-38% to increase taxes on the poor so they could cut taxes on the rich.
Voters approved a 1 cent increase in the regressive sales tax, with the money being used to reduce local property taxes.
That's practically the whole Brownback/Republican platform right there - increase taxes on the poor, and cut taxes for the rich.
Clearly those with more expensive property are going to gain more from the property tax reduction, but it's possible that those with more expensive property also have higher incomes and thus spend more and will pay more of the extra sales taxes.
To be fair, too, some of the extra sales taxes will be paid by out of towners shopping at our Wal-mart and our grocery stores and gas stations. Many of the local voters too, will be able to avoid the extra sales taxes - because they are retired military and can shop on the post.
But the only clear winners - landlords. And the more property the landlord owns, the more they will gain.
And the clear losers - renters. They will pay the extra sales tax and see none of the property tax cuts, which will go instead, to their landlord.
Our "own" city government, of course, used its resources to push for a yes vote, and all they talked about was "how much you will save from the lower property taxes". You see your property tax bill once a year. It's hard to figure out how much you are paying in sales taxes. I certainly don't keep track of it.
Depressing to me that so many voters can be buffaloed, or don't care if the poor pay more to subsidize the rich, as long as they get their little $30 cut too.
Maybe it is just time to embrace our landlord overlords.
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and then use it in their own interest to spread false information in order to deceive and manipulate the populace into doing their will at the ballot box.
Of course, it can't happen here.
