News Roundup for 10/21/11

Herman Cain

-Headline of the Day-
"Herman Cain Defends 9-9-9 By Dropping One Of The 9s."

Pizza guy Herman Cain's 9-9-9 plan -- a 9% corporate income tax, 9% personal income tax, and 9% sales tax -- is the best tax plan ever devised by man. Let's look at the advantages here; it's simple, it's... Ummm... Well, it's simple. No more goofing around with tax forms looking for deductions that would bring your taxes down. It's freakin' awesome!

Still, Cain admitted that people at the low end of the economic scale wouldn't do so well under his awesome plan. So no more 9-9-9 for the dirt poor. For them, it's 9-0-9. No income taxes (just like things are now) and a new sales tax. You still pay more, but not as much more. Now shut up and stop being poor!

Of course, this doesn't address the other problems with the plan -- most notably, if you aren't wealthy, it sucks.

Still, any step away from 9-9-9 is a step in the right direction. (Talking Points Memo)


-#OccupyYourMailbox-
Ever wonder why people sympathize with Occupy Wall Street?


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Well there ya go then... (Truthdig)


-Bonus HotD-
"Michele Bachmann's New Hampshire Staff All Fleeing Like Hell."

The exodus is so big that you could truthfully say that Shelly doesn't actually have a New Hampshire campaign anymore. Bonus fun: a Bachmann appearance in San Francisco fails to attract even protesters.

She's totally gonna be president! (Wonkette)

News Roundup for 10/13/11

History's greatest president (and two Hollywood actors)

-Headline of the Day-
"Rep. Bachmann Hits Cain On Taxes: 'I Want To Adopt The Reagan Tax Plan.'"

Shelly Bachmann must've heard that Herman Cain got his economic plan from a video game, because she's totally against it. She has a better plan, she says, from one of the "great economists that I admire, Ronald Reagan." Note to Shelly: Reagan was an actor in monkey movies, not an economist. But close enough, right?

Anyway, here's her plan; take the current tax rates and raise them (Reagan's rates were higher than they are today), then freak out over the huge deficits these tax rates create and raise them again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again. Make sure that at least one of these tax hikes is called "the biggest tax increase ever enacted during peacetime."

Then enjoy a new golden age as your economy suffers through a recession and the president's approval rating hits 35%. To make it all extra-Reagany, throw in a massive market crash so severe that will forever be remembered as "Black Monday." Obviously, you're going to want to schedule that one for an actual Monday.

You know, looking at this, it seems like less of an economic plan and more of a way for a sad and forgotten former-frontrunner to drop Reagan's name at every opportunity. (Media Matters, with video)


-Cartoon time with Mark Fiore-
Hey kids, have you heard about the 99-percenters and this Occupy Everystreet business? Well, it turns out they've found a spokesperson!


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Freakin' hippie FDR! Go back to San Francisco and smoke pot, you commie! (MarkFiore.com)


-Bonus HotD-
"John McCain's ideas will save billions and billions of jobs."

That's literally what McCain argues, that eliminating regulations would increase employment, because they're currently "costing businesses billions and billions of jobs."

I think Mr. Cranky needs a nap. (Plum Line)