Modest Proposal: Poll Tax
My big high school graduation gift was a stock portfolio of one share each in five different local companies (I think Microsoft, Starbucks, Nordstrom, Boeing and...something else.) Anyway, for years and years, I would get the annual report four-color glossy thing, along with a proxy vote to mail back. Since I had one share in each company, I was
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Dude. The reason the economy is in the toilet right now isn't due to poor people, it's due to abuses by the rich idiots you're trying to empower.
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G'day.
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That was an excellent ad hominem attack on my post, but you don't get to decide to dismiss an argument because you don't like it's title.
Well, this is your journal. I suppose you can. But you'd be wrong.
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Did you not notice the part where I say that I would limit the number of votes that the top earners could have precisely to keep the rich from having too much power? Guess not.
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I did not reference your logarithmic idea for two reasons: it was unfinished and therefore not suitable for criticism; it is a difference in degree, not in kind. The idea of granting additional votes to the rich is repugnant, in addition to being unconstitutional, no matter how many votes you plan on granting them.
The idea of requiring federal/imperial service (as illustrated in Heinlein's book) is an entirely different issue, and one I might support. However, that policy also has issues - for instance, how can a handicapped person acquire their rights, if they can't serve "on the line"?
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I can understand why you have misgivings and would like to explore your thoughts more, but it seems like you want to wallow in the Philosophy 120 (Introduction to Logic) side of things. If you start your salvo with "lolwut," you don't get to be surprised when I don't take your points seriously. And when you continue with "This title is a red herring," I roll my eyes and move on to other stuff, because you haven't.
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One of the fundamental premises of your Modest Proposal is that rich people should have more political power than poor people. Premises, heck, that's the stated goal: "We're now at a point where half of the country isn't paying any federal income tax at all, but they're allowed to vote ... This does not make a lick of sense. Those decisions should be made by the people who have put some skin in the game."
When I point out that this is a bad thing, you retort with a criticism of ancillary matters, such as the article title - a example of an argumentum ad hominem - rather than addressing my points. If you want to move past the Intro to Logic topics, stop making the mistakes we were taught to avoid in Philosophy 120 ( ... )
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