National debt / balanced budget?

[TOGIE]

Some good news

U.S. posts $119 billion budget surplus in January; first in over 2 years

The U.S. government posted a $119 billion budget surplus in January, the first in more than two years, amid strong growth in tax receipts and a sharp drop in pandemic-related outlays, the Treasury Department said on Thursday.

www.reuters.com

thanks elon

 

[Jamen]

Just to add to this. Even here in small town North Dakota about every place is hiring. But like the one article says i know several people who have applied for jobs with not even a call back. There are a few businesses that are on social media always apologizing their hours change due to staffing issues, but there are people i know had their kids apply there without even a call back "fast food places".

And to add my $.02 on the above if a company wants their employees to work full time they should pay a wage to allow them to live. I agree minimum wage jobs aren't meant to be careers. But if the company wants to keep these employees long term at full time i believe they should make a livable wage.

I think the pandemic really opened alot of peoples eyes to the food and retail industry just how rude customers can be and what they pay is not worth it in most cases. A lot found employment elsewhere.

But a lot comes down to the individual and what they want in life and how they are going to get there. I started several side businesses right before and during the pandemic. And if i wanted i could be as busy as i wanted, even had a few investors wanting me to quit my full time job to do these side businesses full time.

We all fall on hard times every now and then but IMO in the long run its a persons choice to be broke.

 

[Deleted member 28227]

People producing wealth and not relying on the government is contrary to current belief.

MCDonald's stock has done great since 2020. So have a lot of other companies.

The unemployment rate is very low.



My hot take, folks are whining because they want the same over qualified people they paid in 8-15' post crash to work for them for the same low wages.

Now they either have to choose from truly entry-level folks or raise their wages to compete and they are complaining.

Capitalism goes both ways, if you don't want a minimum wage you can't also complain about companies having to pay competitively.

 

[SAJ-99]

thanks elon

Yep. Maybe there is something to the thought of taxing billionaires’ stock holdings?

 

[TOGIE]

Yep. Maybe there is something to the thought of taxing billionaires’ stock holdings?

yeah definitely. tax the effin jabeezus out of em.

and not by raising their taxes so they finally pay their "fair share." just actually tax them... you know, so they pay a share for once.

 

[belshawelk]

MCDonald's stock has done great since 2020. So have a lot of other companies.
View attachment 212449
The unemployment rate is very low.

View attachment 212450

My hot take, folks are whining because they want the same over qualified people they paid in 8-15' post crash to work for them for the same low wages.

Now they either have to choose from truly entry-level folks or raise their wages to compete and they are complaining.

Capitalism goes both ways, if you don't want a minimum wage you can't also complain about companies having to pay competitively.

Just remember that McDonalds stock price is the corporation not the stores. Most all stores are privately owned. Raising wages doesn't get you more qualified people. Being qualified gets you a higher wage. Heck McDonalds can pay $25 and hour for all I care. I just don't want people to bitch if a cheeseburger costs $10 and not $1. Everyone wants lower prices and that comes at a cost somewhere. (lower cost or goods and services). We have to have multiple wage brackets along with price structures. If we dont then lets all drive the same car, live in the same houses, own the same guns, pay the same taxes and take the same vacations. it can be just like communism.

 

[BigHornRam]

yeah definitely. tax the effin jabeezus out of em.

and not by raising their taxes so they finally pay their "fair share." just actually tax them... you know, so they pay a share for once.

Yeah! Make him sell all his stock, and then you can be left all alone holding that bag of do do!

 

[longbow51]

What's the over/under on how long this thread goes on or turns into a cheese debate?

 

[TOGIE]

Just remember that McDonalds stock price is the corporation not the stores. Most all stores are privately owned. Raising wages doesn't get you more qualified people. Being qualified gets you a higher wage. Heck McDonalds can pay $25 and hour for all I care. I just don't want people to bitch if a cheeseburger costs $10 and not $1. Everyone wants lower prices and that comes at a cost somewhere. (lower cost or goods and services). We have to have multiple wage brackets along with price structures. If we dont then lets all drive the same car, live in the same houses, own the same guns, pay the same taxes and take the same vacations. it can be just like communism.

yeah but the monthly franchise fees and rent are all based on some percentage of gross sales.

but yeah any way you slice it raising wages does raise prices obviously. 7th grade economics.

i think mcd's stock is largely the result of everyone switching to the drive thru and mcd's needing half they employees they used to. sales have boomed i'm pretty sure, mcd's is delicious, frankly. even people that say it's gross and refuse to eat there know it's delicious.

i mean, have you seen this bad boy? almost bought one yesterday.



the system will sort it all out.

the mcdonalds by my house basically doesn't have a counter anymore, it's basically computer kiosks and a hole in the wall where they can hand you food.

maybe they raise wages and the price of a big mac meal goes through the roof, it already has anyway. but i suspect, especially with fast food, we'll find that there are just fewer jobs to be had because they don't need people to do half of it anymore.

 

[Deleted member 28227]

Just remember that McDonalds stock price is the corporation not the stores. Most all stores are privately owned. Raising wages doesn't get you more qualified people. Being qualified gets you a higher wage. Heck McDonalds can pay $25 and hour for all I care. I just don't want people to bitch if a cheeseburger costs $10 and not $1. Everyone wants lower prices and that comes at a cost somewhere. (lower cost or goods and services). We have to have multiple wage brackets along with price structures. If we dont then lets all drive the same car, live in the same houses, own the same guns, pay the same taxes and take the same vacations. it can be just like communism.

I'm fine if they go out of business, welcome to capitalism.

Raising wages does makes you more competitive for qualified candidates, as do things like flexible hours.

If the argument is that minimum wages jobs are for entry-level/ teenagers, then my argument is ok then what is McD's doing, or has changing in their business model that is making it difficult for them to find and hire teenagers?

My guess is that they actually haven't been relying on that section of the market for quite some time and in a tighter market it's catching up with them.

There are folks who are willing to work for their wages, they just don't want to hire them.

Completely speculative, my part, but it makes sense to me at least that if their are periods when you can hire people with PhDs for 40k a year to work in the food industry there are probably going to be times when you can't hire a highschool kid to work for you for $25 and hour.

 

[TOGIE]

Yeah! Make him sell all his stock, and then you can be left all alone holding that bag of do do!

the point being he has to pay some sort of income tax without selling his stock.

plus the only doo doo i ever hold is when walking my dog

 

[BigHornRam]

the point being he has to pay some sort of income tax without selling his stock.

plus the only doo doo i ever hold is when walking my dog

Income comes from selling his stock, or dividend from stock. You want to tax the paper value of his assets. What if the stock price plummets? Should he get a tax refund then?

 

[TOGIE]

Income comes from selling his stock, or dividend from stock. You want to tax the paper value of his assets. What if the stock price plummets? Should he get a tax refund then?

point being laws would need to change. it wouldn't necessarily be based on stock or other non liquid assets.

it would have be focused on how people with hundreds of millions of dollars, or tens of billions, are paying for their lifestyle while simultaneously having zero income to be taxed, and therefore no income tax.

regardless, i'm not holding my breath on there ever being a solution.

 

[Deleted member 28227]

Income comes from selling his stock, or dividend from stock. You want to tax the paper value of his assets. What if the stock price plummets? Should he get a tax refund then?

What if you did just that and allowed carry over of losses?

 

[BigHornRam]

point being laws would need to change. it wouldn't necessarily be based on stock or other non liquid assets.

it would have be focused on how people with hundreds of millions of dollars, or tens of billions, are paying for their lifestyle while simultaneously having zero income to be taxed, and therefore no income tax.

regardless, i'm not holding my breath on there ever being a solution.

Sounds like a sales tax.

 

[BigHornRam]

What if you did just that and allowed carry over of losses?

Good job security for accountants, appraisers, and IRS agents!

 

[longbow51]

Since EM paid 11 B in taxes 2021 I think that counts as a "share". Supposedly largest tax bill ever. A few billion more than I paid, but I'm retired

 

[Deleted member 28227]

Good job security for accountants, appraisers, and IRS agents!

As long as they are making some good hunting content and advocating for elk in the off season I don't see that as a bad thing

You're right though... wildly, and probably too, complicated

 

[noharleyyet]

Mr. Musk might be the best 5bil the gov ever invested.

 

[BigHornRam]

Since EM paid 11 B in taxes 2021 I think that counts as a "share". Supposedly largest tax bill ever. A few billion more than I paid, but I'm retired

And they still want more blood out of him. No wonder he wants to go to Mars.