In his April 13 speech on his country鈥檚 $14.3 trillion government deficit, US President Barack Obama called on the US Congress to change the US tax system 鈥渟o that the amount of taxes you pay isn鈥檛 determined by what kind of accountant you can afford.鈥
He said: 鈥淚n the last decade, the average income of the bottom 90% of all working Americans actually declined. The top 1% saw their income rise by an average of more than a quarter of a million dollars each. And that鈥檚 who needs to pay less taxes?
鈥淭hey want to give people like me a $200,000 tax cut that鈥檚 paid for by asking 33 seniors to each pay $6000 more in health costs? That鈥檚 not right, and it鈥檚 not going to happen as long as I鈥檓 President.鈥
Woah! What鈥檚 that? Is it the surprise return of 鈥淵es-We-Can鈥 Obama who instantly morphed into 鈥淵es-We-Can-Continue-To-Serve-The Rich鈥 Obama after his 2008 election?
Don鈥檛 hold your breath.
The gross inequality in the US was summed up in the pithy May 2011 : 鈥淥f the 1%, by the 1%, for the 1%.鈥
The article, by Joseph Stiglitz, revealed some of this ugly truth:
鈥淭he upper 1% of Americans are now taking in nearly a quarter of the nation鈥檚 income every year. In terms of wealth rather than income, the top 1% control 40%.
鈥淭heir lot in life has improved considerably. Twenty-five years ago, the corresponding figures were 12% and 3% 鈥
鈥淲hile the top 1% have seen their incomes rise 18% over the past decade, those in the middle have actually seen their incomes fall. For men with only high-school degrees, the decline has been precipitous 鈥 12% in the last quarter-century alone.
鈥淎ll the growth in recent decades 鈥 and more 鈥 has gone to those at the top."
So Obama had to acknowledge this truth. But he added that he was open to compromise with the Republican-controlled US Congress.
In the absence of sustained mass pressure, on his past record Obama will not deliver on his latest promises.
Could such a 鈥済ame-changing鈥 movement arise in the US? It can, if the struggle of the working people of Wisconsin against cutbacks in that state can be generalised. When that happens, the US will really become the 鈥渓and of the free鈥 and a real beacon of liberty to people around the world.
Struggling for real change from within the 鈥渂elly of the beast鈥 is arduous. We know that without system change in the world鈥檚 wealthy nations, war, oppression, hunger and environmental destruction pose a grave threat to human survival.
We need your help to play our part in this struggle. We have a $250,000 fighting fund target for 麻豆传媒 Weekly. So far this year GLW鈥檚 supporters have raised $52,536. Please help us raise the rest by making a donation online today.
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