ario's digital detritus - "To All My Valued Employees"

I think he has a point... which is that he doesn't feel that he should pay additional taxes to bail out other businesses that made bad decisions...

even more interesting is that the bad decisions of businesses (financial firms and banks) which lead to the current situation are aggregations of the bad decisions made by people who took out mortgages with terms that they could not fulfill.

so now in hard economic times when business is shitty for everyone.. he's saying that if he is asked to pony up more money in taxes to pay for the bailout of people who made bad decisions he will call it quits.

The guy seems to be saying taxes are going way up but that's simply mistaken. Over the last week or so it has become clear that taxes may go down, precisely as a stimulus measure... precisely for the reasons this person argues: taxes slow economic activity, and tax cuts can speed them. furthermore, direct checks to "welfare moms" and everyone else have also been criticized as ineffective. We tried one last year and it didn't do much. so this guy, if he actually exists, is not providing a critique of the stimulus proposals of the incoming president.

A real economic critique: Tax cuts are an ok stimulus, but they take too long to work. Checks to people are a weak stimulus, because people save them or spend them on imports. Instead, the Obama administration intends to "save or create" 3 million jobs, in infrastructure and other categories, because these create results locally and put money in people's pockets. Here's one of his incoming cabinet explaining this:

http://gregmankiw.blogspot.com/2009/01/christy-romer-on-fiscal-stimulus.html

The economist says "people respond to incentives". Ok, let's laugh in this "business owner's" face: Taxes will not shoot up. Let's say they did and this guy ran for the border. Fine. He's not exactly wrong on that point: Massive tax increases would dis-incentivize businesses. So how is his business doing now? Are sales up? Or down? Sales are down massively throughout the economy. How come that doesn't drive him to retire? You can't tax a loss! The idea--which might not work--is to save-or-create three million jobs, restore confidence in the prospects of the nation, and keep people doing business with this guy. Tax policy WILL be a factor... tax policy is argued to be HALF the stimulus sometimes... but we're talking about a tax CUT.

Overall, you're right, this is a misinformed rant. This business owner should be very frightened... of deflation! Of currency devaluation! Of no profit at all! Instead, he thinks he'll remain profitable, and he'll still be paying huge taxes on his gains. Perhaps he thinks it's 2004? He's dreaming. Or... HE'S A FAKE.

I bet you're right. I bet it was written when those $600 checks went out in the mail. There was little awareness at that time of the looming crisis. I bet that guy's business relied on credit and now he's totally fucked... but not by taxation.

Political/economic views aside, this boss is a complete dick. Imagine getting a letter from your boss saying "if something ends up happening that you have no control over, I'll fire you". I'd quit a company the day I got a letter like that. He obviously doesn't consider himself and his employees a "team" (where we're all in this together). He's just some douche with a chip on his shoulder because he couldn't find a work/life balance (read: get laid) for two decades, and takes it out by making his entire company feel like shit because a Democrat got elected.

Edited at 2009-01-16 08:39 pm (UTC)

I just noticed the ads running on that site. Gah.

Agreed with Buster. This guy is a dick, and a fucking whiner, and I wouldn't want this asshole as a boss.

Do we as a society support folks that aren't as "productive"? Sure. We provide welfare, free healthcare, job training, free public education, all sorts of things. Some people abuse it, but the difference between conservatives and liberals is that conservatives are quite willing to sacrifice folks that really need those services, just to spite those that are taking advantage of the system. Some people like me, though, actually believe that being a citizen of this country means that we have a responsibility to one another. And quite frankly, if I were running a business I'd hate to think that my business was being used to fund the war in Iraq.

Now, my heart bleeds for the dude because he had to eat Ramen noodles, but my perspective is that if he was doing that, he had a horrific business plan. He was either starting a business without sufficient capital or a good backup job, or he was just plain losing money in the beginning. In cases like that you're taking a gamble, and you can't assume that the vaunted title of "small business owner" anoints you against all sorts of blame for the situation you get yourself into. Likewise, if he took advantage of a small business loan, or government-sponsored programs for new businesses, or tax writeoffs for losses, or whatever, he's guilty of taking the same kind of government sponsored "welfare" from the businesses that are actually succeeding.

Finally, businesses are responsible for an unequal share of the tax burden, especially at the local level. That's a fact in many jurisdictions. However, there is a demand for these services, and the money needs to come from somewhere. If he can come up with a more reasonable tax structure that doesn't screw over the poor so that this wanker can retire in luxury, I'm all ears.

But I think that many people start businesses without an inkling as to how to run them. We always focus on the successful, and we always assume people are more rational than they really are.

I think this guy's mistake (well, one of them) is that he seems to think that money is a thing, in the way that a chair or a plate of pasta is a thing. So when his money is "taken" from him in the form of his paying taxes, I'm sure it does feel like theft (to him).

Blaming the pregnant "welfare mom" with 3+ children? Check. (Hey, she got pregnant four times. That's definitive proof she got lucky at least four more times than the author did.)

All those taxes? Does he think that ordinary people somehow *don't* pay taxes?

I have state taxes. Federal taxes. Property taxes. Sales and use taxes. Payroll taxes. Workers compensation taxes. Unemployment taxes.

Yes, I too have state, county, property, school (separate from property), federal, AND an 8+% sales tax. If I lived in one of the boroughs of NYC, I'd have city taxes on top of that. And there's some tax(es) I pay due to being self-employed.

And doesn't it seem odd that after all those years of penny pinching and going without, the first tax break he got would go right to hiring another employee? I'm supposed to believe he wouldn't buy himself a new suit?

(Anyone else find that live traffic feed on the right side of his blog super-creepy?)

it sounds like he doesn't know how to run a business if he's complaining that much about taxes. why he doesn't contract the tax guy or make better decisions on how to run a business such that he has fewer employees or more deductions makes me wonder why he's pushing this onto politics. it's as if he isn't aware of the limited infrastructure benefits he gets from the taxes he provides.

"I eat, and breathe this company every minute of the day. There is no rest. There is no weekend."

Well, shit, no wonder you're fucking up, dude. That's a recipe for disaster, regardless of the tax rate you pay.

obama's proposed tax increases bring us to somewhere slightly below the capital gains and personal income tax rates of the clinton administration.

under clinton the economy added 20.8 million private sector jobs in 8 years.

under bush the economy lost 3.1 million private sector jobs, the first net job loss presidency since hoover.

when i hear people bitching about increased capital gains and income taxes, i'm like yeah, it sucks, but we had even higher rates under clinton and it didn't exactly hobble job creation.

My goodness, how does he get out of bed each day, thinking about having to pay taxes? Taxes that didn't exist in any way, shape or form prior to January 20, 2009. And now, considering all the interest he's paid on money he's never lost, he wants to pack up his bag and leave the country?

Actually, that's just fine with me. I've had enough of the bitchers and the whiners and the moaners with their hand in the till, expecting something for nothing. When they're finally asked to pull the wagon instead of just riding along with all their possessions, they throw a tantrum like this. Fuck 'em. I've had enough of their leeching off of my work anyway. Take your loot and get the hell out. I for one still believe in a country that provides for domestic tranquility, promotes the general welfare, and secures the blessings of liberty for all its citizens, instead of just a lucky few. One less of the few will plug this drain on the Treasury and make more available for the rest of us.

Good-bye. Good luck. And fuck off, Mr. boss (and you know it's a man).

I, too, rec'd this from a family member. I responded point by point but there were a couple of hot buttons for me.

1. I'm not too keen on the stereotyping and demonizing of a single mom who needs some help. Why not point to the father of her child/children who deserted her? Is this really a race thing? Reagan's cadillac welfare queen (who never existed) was code to show that he was a white supremist. Is that your message as well? Would you prefer to show family values by suggesting that she get an abortion? How about lobbying for birth control to be paid as a medical item the way viagra is? But back to the economy....

Actually, both contribute to economic stimulation. The single mother spends every sent of her welfare check so she, and others like her, make a relatively greater impact. From the NYT:

"Nearly 30 percent [of the current stimulus bill] is devoted to unemployment benefits, food stamps and fiscal aid to states so that they don’t have to cut services, raise taxes and lay off employees and contractors. EVIDENCE IS OVERWHELMING THAT SUCH SPENDING YIELDS THE BIGGEST RETURN FOR EVERY DOLLAR SPENT."[emphasis added]

2. > > > The fact is, if I deducted (Read: Stole) 50% of your
> > paycheck you'd quit and you wouldn't work here. I
> > mean, why should you? That's nuts.

Well, actually, with federal and state taxes and FICA and my portion of health insurance (you do provide health insurance, don't you?), you probably already take out a pretty good chunk. If you don't want to pay so much personal income tax, pay yourself less. You could devote more to R&D or you could pay your employees more or you could donate more to charity. All four of these suggestions would result is fewer taxes for you and/or your business and would further stimulate the economy.

You might want to have a conversation with Warren Buffet. He boasts about paying less taxes than his secretary. (I think this is percentage of income, not actual dollars, but maybe not. Actually, most of those is the top tax bracket pay less of their income in taxes due to the many deductions they take. The vast majority of us can't itemise.)

3. > > > Then, I will close this company down, move to
> > another country, and retire.

Nonsense, you'll sell your company, probably at a handsome profit, to a competitor or a conglomerate that will do this for you while you retire somewhere nice. Or, if you try hard enough, you might find an enthusiastic person to take over management responsibilities for you.

Sounds like your enthusiasm for your chosen life has waned. Let's see, you were probably somewhere between 20 and 28 when you started plus 28 years in the business would make you somewhere between 48 and 56, probably closer to 56. Ripe for a middle-age crisis. Or an early retirement.

You guys don't have real jobs, do you? Waiter, barrista, live-with-M&D, don't own a business...