stubeeef said:Did you see in the CBO where individuals account for 82% of govern revenue?
You are the one saying how under compensated government employees are. I know lawyers that are working for the government and even banks, they know they make less, but admit to working half the load they would work in a firm.
Pay is one issue, but heathcare costs and pensions are valuable benefits. Most people seek government jobs because of the high pay to work ratio, and benefits. I (maybe wrongly) believe most people that leave the government do so because of frustration, not pay.
So you want higher corporate taxes and higher import/export duties? I think most economists would argue against seeking government revenue primarily from import and export duties, like we did 200 years ago. The effect would be to drastically cut, if not eliminate, trade. Regardless, higher import duties are always passed on to the consumer as higher prices. Higher export duties cripple US industries (and eliminate the jobs of their workers). Higher corporate taxes? That might not be a bad idea. What about individuals who own their (or are their own) business? How would you tax them? We could tax certain things instead, putting higher taxes on consuming luxuries and harmful goods and lower taxes on consuming necessities and things that are beneficial to society. A well designed consumption tax might be good (although it would lead to a larger black market), but you're still taxing individuals. Really, I don't see much of a way around taxing individuals. What's your suggestion?
I didn't really mean that government employees are undercompensated. I'm just saying that calling them 'fat cats' is a little silly. There are a lot of advantages to government jobs. Stability is one. When I worked in software development, my contracting company had lost the bid for more projects from our client, so I was told on a Thursday afternoon at 4:00 that would be my last day and not to come in on Friday (because it was in a differerent accounting period). Luckily I had caught wind of the rumor that almost all of the employees in my office were going to be let go so I had already found another job (for more money) starting the next Monday. But that kind of crap would never happen in a government job: let go with one hour's notice. You're right about other government benefits: pensions, health care. They are also good on flex time and I imagine lots of other things. I would think they don't have people into lots of overtime. Whereas a lawyer working for a big firm might put in 70 hour weeks, a government lawyer may not ever have to work more than 40? I really have no idea if that's true or not.
(My current government job is a part-time position (internship) for graduate students, so I get none of these benefits, so you can stop accusing me of being a fat cat.