WE ARE ALL AMERICANS
A repository for all things anti-oligarchy
It started out as just a little dumpster fire...
I don't really remember the moment or instance when it hit me that we are in an historical moment of crisis. Maybe it was election night back in November; maybe it was the announcement that a meme coin was being offered to the public by the fucking President of the United States; the used car salesmen at the White House; the announcement that half a million people were being given a pink slip by the country that they hoped to become a part of? Any and all of these, plus a shit-ton more is more likely.
My anger has only grown as we get whipsawed each and every day by an administration hell-bent on the destruction of the very fabric of our lives. It is truly mind-bending that so many awful things can occur in a single day. And then the next day there is something more radical or vile to absorb.
So, I have decided that I need to channel my anger into something more positive - hence this website. My hope for it is that y'all will come here and add to it as you see fit. Comment on existing articles or posts, add links to other sources (including your own), and generally come together as one to see how we can maintain our collective sanity.
n.b. I expect a little decorum, and I will delete anything that breaks the rules of our common decency: racism, homophobia and the like will not be tolerated, as equality and acceptance of others AS THEY ARE is the very foundation of this endeavor.
Look, we're not perfect. We never have been. But a great strength of our country has always been its ability to work together towards a common goal, be that in science, space travel, civil rights, what have you. We see a goal and we work as a group to see it through. We are really good at it, even though sometimes it takes longer than we would have wanted.
So, join in the fun and angst and talk to one another.
Let's Talk 🙃
Let's talk about Warren Buffett for a minute (article here)
The link goes to an article at Business Insider from February 28 of this year. The headline says it all: Berkshire Hathaway paid a corporate record tax for 2024 of $26.8 BILLION. That's an astronomical number, but more importantly, it is a huge sign of corporate responsibility. Can you imagine if every Fortune 500 company did the same?
The tax and accounting industry in this country is massive. According to the Census Bureau, as of the second quarter of 2024 it employed 1,174,118 people and generated revenues of $83.6+ billion. Granted, this covers the entire industry, not just internal corporate folks, but because the US Tax Code is so massive, specialization is necessary, either to file simple returns for you and I or to file a complex return for a corporation.
This last area is the bugaboo. It is easy to find headlines referring to corporate America's penchant for finding tax loopholes in order to not pay taxes and share that money with officers of the company and the shareholders. So, what would happen if all of the top 500 corporations in this country were to pay their fair share? And by fair I mean legitimate taxes on revenues, with no focus on loopholes for avoidance? As was noted in the above article, the Berkshire Hathaway payment amounted to 5% of 2024's corporate taxes collected by the IRS. 5%!! From one goddamned company!
Individuals in this country, regardless of political persuasion or preference are NOT the problem.
