Hey Has, you don't think the state of those finances you alluded to, had anything to do with quite massive tax avoidance; by the 40% of the population, who as millionaires, and billionaires, call NY home?

Why even one of the world's richest men, Warren Buffet, the oracle from Omaha, was suitably shocked, to find out his $60,000.00 a year secretary, paid tax at twice the rate as him.
And given his huge personal wealth and annual income, he would hardly notice if he also paid the going rate charged his often underpaid employees.

It just never occurs to some, that if those with the least had more than quite blatant slave wages, they would spend more as the economy boosting discretionary spend, and not something that occurs, when banks are bailed out, or handed additional cash to stash.

Or if those with the least had more, as just a fair minimum wage, they might even pay more tax, thereby relieving much of the city/state fiscal shortcomings.

Which in so many cases, is the result of municipalities, investing in relatively worthless derivatives, as opposed to the much more reliable Government bonds.

There's an old saying in business, if you don't understand it don't buy it; and unfortunately, too many city/state authorities did just that, and now can't find the cash for the most basic services!

Personally, I would junk a tax system that allows clearly contrived avoidance, and replace it with a vastly less expensive model, that just doesn't!

G'dayBruce: Love your work mate. I think you have a finger on the pulse mate, and or the real reasons why places like Califorication, are going or are apparently broke?
Rhrosty.

Using 'progressive' as the code word for socialism is sneaky and underhand.

All of those avowed Fabian Labor leaders like Bob Hawke with their over-used 'p' word meaning (nudge, nudge, wink, wink) international socialism. How sly. What a complete waste of time, especially where they themselves like to live very high on the hog at the expense of those poorly off that they have extended taxes to include, such as through 'user pays'.

Gutless egocentric, materialistic, Chardonnay leftists who would have the real Left rolling in their graves and not recognising them as left, but something else.

Yes, OTB,

Bob Hawke, ex Union man, now multi-millionare man. That's Labor for you.

Randy Credico ran against De Blasio on the platform of putting small tobin tax on all Wall St transactions and they shut him out via media control.

De Balasio is a Wall St man and only tinkers with the edges so the masses are placated and Wall St can continue to loot their economy.

Posted by Arjay, Monday, 24 November 2014 4:16:03 PM

‘When a leader in Australia on the left with support from a major party, who has intelligence, conviction and the guts to say what the rest of us are thinking - a landslide is there for the taking.’

Yeah … well, I dunno.

There is also a convenient plane crash or fatal road accident there for the taking. Or revelations of dodgy business dealings and taking kickbacks. Or waking up in a hotel room with an envelope full of pictures of him [sic] screwing a prostitute or little kiddies. Or a sudden mysterious cancer diagnosis or weird motor-neuron disease.

Should he [sic] pass through that particular gauntlet, stand by for another 1975 Dismissal replay – ‘financial incompetence’ demonisation by media, a conveyor belt of mostly unsubstantiated MP scandals, lots of ever so sincere op eds about his ‘arrogance’ and 'narcissism' and other personality flaws, and a sudden, dramatic and perfectly timed rise in unacceptably ‘bullying’, ‘militant’ and 'violent' union behaviour.

The public will dance to the carefully orchestrated disillusionment tune and dutifully realise they have been duped by yet another demagogue that promised everything and delivered nothing.

That’s because the media said so, and the media always tells the truth

The 'Progressives' seem quite adept at knifing one another. What about the job done on Rudd?