Imaginary Conversation

Yesterday, I had an imaginary conversation with a learning disabled tenth grade student.
The topic was what Congress and the president could do to address the budget deficit.
The exchange transpired as shown below:


Me:  What do you consider to be more important - increasing revenues or enacting major cuts in programs and funding directed towards the middle and lower class?

Student:  Obviously, increasing revenues since by far most of our spending is built-in and not discretionary.

Me:  What do you believe might have been some missteps in this area?

Student:  Well, one would have to be retarded not to have ended the temporary tax cuts for the wealthy.  My parents both voted for Obama mainly on that promise.  It seems to me that these people missed out on the great recession they helped cause. They should be able to participate like everyone else.  To then see the Social Security payroll tax cut from  6.2% to 4.2% when there is talk of a funding shortage coming sounds pretty stupid.  And the wealthy also benefit from this on the first dinky $106,800 they make.  Also it seems pretty dumb to me that GE, Exxon and many other huge companies pay no corporate income tax when they make billions and also get all kinds of government contracts.

Me:  But economists say that the wealthy contribute to economic growth, that Social Security lost revenues will be reimbursed by the General Fund and the avoiding of taxes by these corporations is perfectly legal under our tax code.

Student:  I don't see really rich people doing anything but shoveling money to hedge fund managers, speculating, collecting dividends from state supported banks and companies who layoff workers & expand overseas to increase profits, giving blood money to candidates and buying foreign made luxury stuff.  I don't see how the General Fund can reimburse SS without printing new money since we are already operating with a huge deficit.  I don't understand why these corporate tax loopholes weren't closed years ago.

Me:  What do you think about hedge fund managers being taxed on the basis of capital gains rather than earnings?

Student:  Anybody would have to be an idiot not to realize that this is how hedge fund managers make their living so the earnings must be counted as income.  And doesn't just a handful of them make billions of dollars for potential income taxes?  Don't they do work for this money?

Me:  You sound fairly intelligent to me - how come you are classified as learning disabled?

Student:  I took "no child left behind" tests and didn't do so well.  I think that resulted from the fact that what they were analyzing on those test had nothing to do with anything important in today's world.  They sure spent a lot of money on it, though - back when we had money.
It doesn't make much difference now anyway.  My guidance counselor told me that special education funding is being cut at our school due to some kind of budget crisis our district is facing.