Quotes of a Texas millionaire

[Zoraxe7]

Im reading this book 'Bushwacked' and in it there are some quotes of a very rich man from Waco Texas. His name is Bernard Rapoport but his freinds call him 'B'.

Unlike most rich people mr.B doesnt like money, he is the only Jewish, socialist insurence millionaire in waco Texas. And he donates a lot of his money to education and other things instead of big houses and fancy cars.

The book says that he is a firm believer in the estate tax and considers its abolition both mean and stupid.

"of course we nead to redistribute income in this country from the wealthy to the poor. And right now these republicans are redistributing it from you to me."

If you suggest to him that social needs should be the job of private charity...

"you are met with with many statistics, facts and numbers ending with a devistating damning of anyone who can be so "criminally stupid as to think that will work."

(remember the poor-houses of 19th century england?)

What do you newgrounders think?

also buy and read the book.

[JakeHero]

Ironic thing about rich liberals, they advocate all these dogshits programs like tax increases across the board, but perform a fair share of tax sheltering so they won't have to pay for the very programs they advocate!

[Boltrig]

At 6/14/07 07:39 PM, Zoraxe7 wrote: "of course we nead to redistribute income in this country from the wealthy to the poor. And right now these republicans are redistributing it from you to me."

To a degree that removes peoples incentive to try. If you study your ass off to get a high paid job, and then have your money taken off you, why bother in the first place?

Communism (which that basicly equates to) doesnt work in large situations. (countries and so on)

If you suggest to him that social needs should be the job of private charity...

"you are met with with many statistics, facts and numbers ending with a devistating damning of anyone who can be so "criminally stupid as to think that will work."

(remember the poor-houses of 19th century england?)

Well not many people will remember them, but they may know about them =p

Private charities that help the underprivelaged are all fine and dandy, but I think what the guy is implying is that its governments job to see to the underprivelaged?

Thats benefits in a nutshell to me. In the UK its jobseekers allowance. A much better name by my reckoning. If someone isnt bothering to even look for work, then theres no sense in giving them cash to continue lazing about.

IUm all in favourof heling those fallen on hard times, but there are a small but significant number who will abuse any system set in place.

Example:

The last series of that turgid shite Big Brother (UK version) They had a guy with tourettes on the programme.

Since the airing of the crap, the excuse "I cant work because I have tourettes" rose from 0 reported cases to cases numbering in the thousands.

None of these sad gits actually did have tourettes, but it just goes to show how the system is abused.

This is why a system that helps the truly needy is hard to implement ; the lazy exploit it.

[Zoraxe7]

At 6/14/07 08:17 PM, Boltrig wrote:

At 6/14/07 07:39 PM, Zoraxe7 wrote: "of course we nead to redistribute income in this country from the wealthy to the poor. And right now these republicans are redistributing it from you to me."

To a degree that removes peoples incentive to try. If you study your ass off to get a high paid job, and then have your money taken off you, why bother in the first place?

Hell than why pay taxes at all then? At least I know taxes are going to education if a liberal is in office. Its Taxes that pay for education.

Communism (which that basicly equates to) doesnt work in large situations. (countries and so on)

Socialism is different from communism, in fact Mr.B is the son of a shoemaker that escaped from a soviet prison camp in Siberia because his views differed that of the government. In fact mr.B made his way to the top because of the education he got because it was funded by higher taxes.

[Boltrig]

At 6/14/07 09:16 PM, Zoraxe7 wrote:

At 6/14/07 08:17 PM, Boltrig wrote:

At 6/14/07 07:39 PM, Zoraxe7 wrote: "of course we nead to redistribute income in this country from the wealthy to the poor. And right now these republicans are redistributing it from you to me."

To a degree that removes peoples incentive to try. If you study your ass off to get a high paid job, and then have your money taken off you, why bother in the first place?

Hell than why pay taxes at all then? At least I know taxes are going to education if a liberal is in office. Its Taxes that pay for education.

Theres a difference between being taxed to provide public services, and having your rewards stripped from you in order to re-distribute the wealth.

If you pay taxes which fund schools say, then your kids will be using that school, and your family benefits. Now say your wages are taken off you and given to a poor family. Wheres the benefit to you?

Harsh way of looking at it but its realistic at least..

Communism (which that basicly equates to) doesnt work in large situations. (countries and so on)

Socialism is different from communism, in fact Mr.B is the son of a shoemaker that escaped from a soviet prison camp in Siberia because his views differed that of the government. In fact mr.B made his way to the top because of the education he got because it was funded by higher taxes.

Again taxes are not the same as wealth re-distribution. Taxes provide public services, availible to everyone. Re-distributing monetary assets benefits only the reciever, not the public.

Re-distribution of wealth, so that everyone has the same, is communism. And it doesnt work. There are numerous global examples and numerous threads on the politics forum dealing with it.

[MortifiedPenguins]

Well, thats very nice coming from the guy thats already made his pile and is set on it.

Compared to the rest of us still making it.

[Zoraxe7]

At 6/15/07 09:16 PM, Boltrig wrote:

Theres a difference between being taxed to provide public services, and having your rewards stripped from you in order to re-distribute the wealth.

Mr.B does not work, he sold his buisness and now has an abudence of money. Mr.B gives most of his money away, his children wont except his money, so when he dies it all goes to charity. He lives his life modestly. So after the 2nd bush tax cuts, which was passed by congress in 2003, Mr.B will get a break of $92,000, and thats on income tax alone, the adverage working family will get $256

If you pay taxes which fund schools say, then your kids will be using that school, and your family benefits. Now say your wages are taken off you and given to a poor family. Wheres the benefit to you?

Well, would you rather have your money taken away from you and given to familys that nead it and will spend it and benifet the market and make its way to the rich anyway, or have it given to someone rich that doesnt nead it?

[Zoraxe7]

At 6/16/07 10:10 AM, Zoraxe7 wrote: Mr.B does not work

He is now retired, he is about 80 something years old.

[JakeHero]

At 6/16/07 11:25 AM, Zoraxe7 wrote:

At 6/16/07 10:10 AM, Zoraxe7 wrote: Mr.B does not work

He is now retired, he is about 80 something years old.

Well no wonder he clings to socialism! He's a senile old fart.

[Zoraxe7]

At 6/16/07 10:56 PM, JakeHero wrote:

Well no wonder he clings to socialism! He's a senile old fart.

Naa, he was socialist way befor that, his father used to wake him up out of bed in the morning with "workers of the world, unite!"

[JakeHero]

At 6/18/07 01:55 PM, Zoraxe7 wrote: Naa, he was socialist way befor that, his father used to wake him up out of bed in the morning with "workers of the world, unite!"

Right. I guess that could be attritubed how he gives thousands of dollars to charity and doesn't just tell everyone else they should share.

[Zoraxe7]

At 6/19/07 05:39 AM, JakeHero wrote:

Right. I guess that could be attritubed how he gives thousands of dollars to charity and doesn't just tell everyone else they should share.

Let me get one thing strait, he doesnt just give a lot of his money away, he gives MOAST of his money away, his children wont except his money and his wife and himself enjoy living a modest but comfertable life.

[JakeHero]

At 6/19/07 11:46 AM, Zoraxe7 wrote: Let me get one thing strait, he doesnt just give a lot of his money away, he gives MOAST of his money away, his children wont except his money and his wife and himself enjoy living a modest but comfertable life.

There isn't a wikipedia article on this guy, so I'm wondering where you keep getting all this info from.

[Zoraxe7]

At 6/19/07 11:48 AM, JakeHero wrote:

There isn't a wikipedia article on this guy, so I'm wondering where you keep getting all this info from.

True, there is no wiki on him, but I just found the site for his foundation.
http://www.rapoportfdn.org/index.php

[CogSpin]

Wow, millionaire.... Only once you get into the billions does your opinion become worth listening to.

[Cuppa-LettuceNog]

At 6/14/07 08:17 PM, Boltrig wrote:

To a degree that removes peoples incentive to try. If you study your ass off to get a high paid job, and then have your money taken off you, why bother in the first place?

That's bullshit. No ones going to say "What?!?! I'm going to make $80,000 this year instead of $110,000? In that case, I'll just decide to be homeless!

Communism (which that basicly equates to) doesnt work in large situations. (countries and so on)

You have no idea what your talking about. Communism is a varient of socialism. Socialism isn't "High Taxes". Socialism is where there is a Government controlled MOP. Even with 100 percent of income going to the government, a public MOP is still capitalism.

If you suggest to him that social needs should be the job of private charity...

Well not many people will remember them, but they may know about them =p

Idunno, Bob Barkers pretty damn old, let's ask him.

Private charities that help the underprivelaged are all fine and dandy, but I think what the guy is implying is that its governments job to see to the underprivelaged?

Exactly. Which is what we already do with welfare, ect.

Thats benefits in a nutshell to me. In the UK its jobseekers allowance. A much better name by my reckoning. If someone isnt bothering to even look for work, then theres no sense in giving them cash to continue lazing about.

Exactly, it's already implemented in most modern nations. But a lot of people, especially here in the U.S and ESPECIALLY the type they grow in texas, wish to abolish or severely limit it.

Example:

The last series of that turgid shite Big Brother (UK version) They had a guy with tourettes on the programme.

Since the airing of the crap, the excuse "I cant work because I have tourettes" rose from 0 reported cases to cases numbering in the thousands.

None of these sad gits actually did have tourettes, but it just goes to show how the system is abused.

This is why a system that helps the truly needy is hard to implement ; the lazy exploit it.

Yes, but "It's inneficient, therefor let's abolish it" is a great logical fallacy. If that where so, Humanity would be one huge anarchy. Hell, Humanity itself would be gone; we're far from perfect.

[animehater]

At 6/14/07 08:17 PM, Boltrig wrote: The last series of that turgid shite Big Brother (UK version) They had a guy with tourettes on the programme.

Since the airing of the crap, the excuse "I cant work because I have tourettes" rose from 0 reported cases to cases numbering in the thousands.

None of these sad gits actually did have tourettes, but it just goes to show how the system is abused.

As a man with tourettes, it is my duty to hunt them down and kill them. Anyone know where they live?

[Cuppa-LettuceNog]

At 6/19/07 07:31 PM, animehater wrote:

As a man with tourettes, it is my duty to hunt them down and kill them. Anyone know where they live?

Well that's easy to find out, play a game of "Maco-FUCKING ASS LICKING CUNT FUCKERS!"

[animehater]

At 6/19/07 08:20 PM, Cuppa-LettuceNog wrote: Well that's easy to find out, play a game of "Maco-FUCKING ASS LICKING CUNT FUCKERS!"

Very mature.

[Zoraxe7]

At 6/19/07 08:20 PM, Cuppa-LettuceNog wrote:

At 6/19/07 07:31 PM, animehater wrote:

As a man with tourettes, it is my duty to hunt them down and kill them. Anyone know where they live?

Well that's easy to find out, play a game of "Maco-FUCKING ASS LICKING CUNT FUCKERS!"

What the hell is that supposed to mean? Twister?

[Cuppa-LettuceNog]

At 6/20/07 08:16 PM, Zoraxe7 wrote:

What the hell is that supposed to mean? Twister?

....It's the tourettes version of Marco-Polo. Geeze, was it too subtle?

[Cuppa-LettuceNog]

At 6/19/07 09:38 PM, animehater wrote:

Very mature.

Hey, it's not every day I get a shot at disenfranchising both an entire group of people AND a popular water game.

[Zoraxe7]

At 6/20/07 10:47 PM, Cuppa-LettuceNog wrote:

At 6/20/07 08:16 PM, Zoraxe7 wrote:

What the hell is that supposed to mean? Twister?

....It's the tourettes version of Marco-Polo. Geeze, was it too subtle?

Well, you spelled Marco 'Maco' and you diddnt have the word Polo in it.

Antways go to hell

[Zoraxe7]

At 6/19/07 05:39 AM, JakeHero wrote:

At 6/18/07 01:55 PM, Zoraxe7 wrote: Naa, he was socialist way befor that, his father used to wake him up out of bed in the morning with "workers of the world, unite!"

Right. I guess that could be attritubed how he gives thousands of dollars to charity and doesn't just tell everyone else they should share.

Thats right.

[Cuppa-LettuceNog]

I am also for the Estate Tax. The fact that those estates can possibly NEVER be taxed is a serious flaw. I remember the major conservative bullshit they ran on T.V was that the tax would be so high farmers would lose their farm.

They left out that the Democrats, in some situations, only wanted to tax estates with a value in the millions.

"Poor Farmer Johny, with his 500 acre farm of weed". Really, when was the last time you saw a small time farmer sell off his farm and become a millionair? Farmers would be the richest group in the nation.

[Cuppa-LettuceNog]

At 6/21/07 09:39 AM, Zoraxe7 wrote:

Well, you spelled Marco 'Maco'

People with Tourettes have little-known speech development issues that make the pronunciation of hard 'K's and 's's hard.

and you diddnt have the word Polo in it.

I know. People with Turrets don't finish their sentence then start swearing for no reason; they can't contol it, and if often punctures their speech.

shifty eyes about number 1

Antways go to hell

See? Now you have turrets to! Isn't it fun?

[SmilezRoyale]

"Mr.B will get a break of $92,000, and thats on income tax alone, the adverage working family will get $256"

That's the way it works unfortunatly; you pay more in taxes you get more back when they're lowered.

This individual beleives in raising taxes on millionaires, but he didn't say anything about raising taxes on people who make 60,000-120,000 a year.
[or atleast i couldn't find something in there.]

i hope he understands what the upper class really is... most of them arn't millionaires; surprise surprise.

[Zoraxe7]

At 8/22/07 11:36 PM, SmilezRoyale wrote: "Mr.B will get a break of $92,000, and thats on income tax alone, the adverage working family will get $256"

Ah, so you have the book too, good for you!