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“When we all have pocket telephones”

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Re: “When we all have pocket telephones”

#51

Post by coldtea »

robertlagrant wrote: post #24
coldtea wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, so? Your comment is like saying "CEOs saying the current market is bad for their industry, while ...still running companies?!" It's not like the observation that a trade is being hurt (in this case, in the kind of disconnect between your job being pointing out absurdity as something that stands out and making it funny, and a society that seems to drown and revel in it) cannot be done by practitioners of said tr…

No it's like saying "CEOs saying they're out of a job while being CEOs".

No, that's the uncharitable, strawman version, that goes for pedanticness over understanding what it means.

It's more like a crooner saying they're being put out of a job after rock n' roll or the Beatlemania, while still having gigs...

Yes, they might still get work and sell some records, but they have a harder time justifying their career, get smaller audiences, and people see them not that culturally or socially relevant anymore...

Re: “When we all have pocket telephones”

#52

Post by themanmaran »

LeonM wrote: post #39
eesmith wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Picking nits while skipping how we don't have off-world colonies or replicants? In that case, the comic got things wrong too. You'll be hard pressed to find people wearing those clothes these days, especially the nurse's headgear. Canes and briefcases are also rare, though I suspect that those rare few wearing a bowler hat might still use them. Also, few people use a bell as their ringtone.

> Also, few people use a bell as their ringtone. I have always used a bell ringtone, I like it because I find it less-invasive then all the other abstract modern ringtones that only give me alarm clock PTSS. Unfortunately, Samsung removed the classing bell ringtone in their latest models :(

Relevant XKCD: https://xkcd.com/479/

Re: “When we all have pocket telephones”

#53

Post by Dracophoenix »

pavlov wrote: post #22
ekianjo wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Taxes have never been as high as now in recent history. You dont have to worry about them going away.

In the US, the highest marginal tax rate for individuals was 70% as recently as 1981. It was 92% in 1952. Today it's 37%. So it's really the other way around — taxes have never been as low as now in recent history.

In 1952, there were so many carveouts and exemptions that few individuals payed the actual 92%. With fastidious accounting, one's personal tax liability could be zero even if one qualified for the highest income bracket. This was the case until 1970 following Congress's invention and institution of the Alternative Minimum Tax. And while 1981 wasn't the most friendly year for low income taxes, increased globalization meant easier opportunities to set up overseas tax structures for the purpose of reducing one's overall tax burden (what's commonly referred to as tax "avoidance"). To make the claim of highest or lowest tax year for the highest income bracket between 1913 and today is impossible to make without accounting for reductions available in the given year.

Re: “When we all have pocket telephones”

#54

Post by dr-detroit »

nonrandomstring wrote: post #7

Lately, stand-up comedians have been saying they're out of a job, because the absurdity of reality is escaping parody. Nothing stays funny for long, because soon enough it's true, and then banal. In a world where all things are absurd, ipso facto nothing is absurd. An interesting question becomes what remains? What are the solid relations that underpin our humanity? Having a boss that tells you what to do? No, long s…

No post body was provided.

Re: “When we all have pocket telephones”

#55

Post by ThunderSizzle »

throw827474737 wrote: post #18
ekianjo wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Taxes have never been as high as now in recent history. You dont have to worry about them going away.

If that just be true for every tax group we would be in a much fairer world with less issues...

No, that is insane.

If anything, sending arbitrary amounts of money to be spent on the interest to pay for the debt of corrupt and failed political ventures is not fair in any regard.

If taxes actually paid for government services, you might have a point, but they do not.

Re: “When we all have pocket telephones”

#57

Post by sumtechguy »

pavlov wrote: post #22
ekianjo wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Taxes have never been as high as now in recent history. You dont have to worry about them going away.

In the US, the highest marginal tax rate for individuals was 70% as recently as 1981. It was 92% in 1952. Today it's 37%. So it's really the other way around — taxes have never been as low as now in recent history.

That is US federal taxes. Now go grab your check and see how much you are paying in taxes that are not called that. Then remember you also pay taxes when you buy things too. Also remember your must carry insurance (3 of those). Also in some cases just for owning something. Plus state and local. My theory is We did not really lower taxes that much. We just itemized the bill to make it look smaller.

Re: “When we all have pocket telephones”

#58

Post by bostik »

googlryas wrote: post #12
nonrandomstring wrote: post #7

Lately, stand-up comedians have been saying they're out of a job, because the absurdity of reality is escaping parody. Nothing stays funny for long, because soon enough it's true, and then banal. In a world where all things are absurd, ipso facto nothing is absurd. An interesting question becomes what remains? What are the solid relations that underpin our humanity? Having a boss that tells you what to do? No, long s…

Stand up comedians are saying this while they're...performing standup?

I wish I could remember who said this, because it was a standup saying something ... in an interview. Not performing.

"It's a sad state of affairs when the most accurate political commentary is done by comedians, while the country is being governed by clowns." Such an apt description of the UK. And while that was said two governments (ie. less than a year) ago, it's only slightly less accurate now.

Re: “When we all have pocket telephones”

#59

Post by robertlagrant »

coldtea wrote: post #51
robertlagrant wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No it's like saying "CEOs saying they're out of a job while being CEOs".

No, that's the uncharitable, strawman version, that goes for pedanticness over understanding what it means. It's more like a crooner saying they're being put out of a job after rock n' roll or the Beatlemania, while still having gigs... Yes, they might still get work and sell some records, but they have a harder time justifying their career, get smaller audiences, and people see them not that culturally or socially r…

It's the opposite of a straw man. The previous post was a straw man, deliberately changing the analogy as well as the subject. I restored the analogy.

Re: “When we all have pocket telephones”

#60

Post by eesmith »

ekianjo wrote: post #42
pavlov wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In the US, the highest marginal tax rate for individuals was 70% as recently as 1981. It was 92% in 1952. Today it's 37%. So it's really the other way around — taxes have never been as low as now in recent history.

Taking extremes is a strawman. What matters is what most people pay.

"Average federal tax rates for all households, by comprehensive household income quintile. 1979 to 2018" at https://www.taxpolicycenter.org/statistics/historical-averag...

"Average Total Federal Tax Rate (percent)" is lower for every percentile from 1979 to 2018.

  Year                     1979  2018
  Lowest Quintile           9.3   0.0
  Second Quintile          15.0   8.1
  Middle Quintile          19.1  12.8
  Fourth Quintile          21.7  16.7
  Highest Quintile         27.1  24.4
  All Quintiles            22.4  19.3
  81st - 90th  Percentiles 23.6  20.0
  91st - 95th Percentiles  25.2  21.9
  96th - 99th Percentiles  27.1  24.2
  Top 1%                   35.1  30.2
So is "Average Individual Income Tax Rate (percent)"

  Year                     1979  2018
  Lowest Quintile          -0.2 -12.0
  Second Quintile           4.1  -2.1
  Middle Quintile           7.4   2.2
  Fourth Quintile          10.1   5.9
  Highest Quintile         15.9  15.4
  All Quintiles            11.1   9.4
  81st - 90th  Percentiles 12.3   9.0
  91st - 95th Percentiles  14.1  11.4
  96th - 99th Percentiles  16.8  15.5
  Top 1%                   22.6  23.5
That makes it really hard to accept your claim that "Taxes have never been as high as now in recent history."

Now, sure, there are state taxes, and sales taxes, and payroll taxes, and all sorts of other taxes.

Still, where do you get the numbers to back your statement that after 40+ years of Reaganism and unending legislative attempts to lower taxes, that the numbers now are higher than ever before?

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