According to polls most Americans (around 80 % I believe) support increasing taxes for the rich.
Of course, everyone supports raising taxes on OTHER PEOPLE.
Paying for these programs don't need to mean increasing the taxes for regular Americans.
Yes, this is what a certain Senator from my state claims. If you think he is right, please show me the math. I have yet to see reasonable, credible numbers that say that all of this can be paid for by taxing the rich and corporations (at least, without raising their taxes to the point where the costs passed on to consumers are intolerable).
Also, Americans pay a lot of corporate taxes such as healthcare premiums. These programs alllow getting rid of these taxes and for most Americans the taxes would get lower despite of increased in state taxes.
This is another of Bernie's claims. And for people who are paying their healthcare premiums entirely out of pocket, yes there would probably be a reduction. But if the single payer system is comparable to Medicare, then it will be FAR from cheap, and will probably cost more than what working people with health insurance through their employer pay towards their premiums by way of payroll deductions. In my case I *know* this to be true because I have Medicare Part A (hospital coverage) and for a time, thinking that I would incur a penalty if I tried to sign up for it after retirement, I was paying Part B (medical coverage) premiums as well. At the time I was advised to ask my Human Resources department if I could forgo their insurance plan and whether they would subsidize my Medicare premiums. Yes I could, but no they would not, and that should tell you something about the relative costs of the two programs. (And just to be clear, my employer pays the lion's share of my private insurance premiums.)
It all comes down to if the corporate media is willing to explain these things correctly to the people instead of fearmongering on the behalf of Big Pharma etc (corporate media and Big Pharma are cahoots because of drug add in the media. The US is insane country for allowing drug adds. Doctors tell what drug you should take! This creates insane insentives for the media to lie about healthcare.
I agree with you about drug ads, but I see no evidence that the mainstream media (MSM) lies to the public about healthcare.
How are increases to the military budget paid for? More borrowing I guess. Corporate media doesn't care, because the military industry complex is the benefactor. Why doesn't military budget increases cause runaway inflation? Funny how helping regular people is always the problem!
Of course, it's all paid for on borrowed money. That's why our debt is astronomical. And it all contributes to inflation, though not as much as giving people "free money" does. TANSTAAFL always applies. Pay now, or pay later. If you're not willing to pay, forgo. I have never lived in Europe, but my understanding is that all European countries with progressive public services tax their citizens at rates that Americans would never tolerate. I wish it were otherwise.
