Add new comment

Dear Andrew: I am so sorry to hear about the cutbacks you have faced and the stress of them. Many Americans are facing these difficult times resourcefully, like you. But I must dissent from the idea taking root that corporations cannot be taxed or jobs will be lost. That's a false choice, and it is one being fueled by corporatist politicians who have failed to insist on rational trade policies to protect our economy. American workers cannot compete with the wages in the third world countries and should not have to, or we will become a third world country ourselves. Rational tax policy creates specific incentives to do business here in the U.S. and would punish companies that ship jobs overseas. And, in Wisconsin, rational tax policies would include targeted incentives to reward creating and keeping good-paying jobs here (and not just the lowest-paid service industry jobs) and it would punish or require companies that would leave after receiving such benefits to pay back such grants or incentives. The documented fact is that so often when corporations get generic tax breaks they do not put that money into hiring more workers, and instead they pay the profits out to shareholders or to CEO's in the incredible compensation packages and bonuses that have been widely reported. Companies will increase production and hiring when the demand for what they are selling increases, not due to tax cuts, and the demand typically increases when millions of ordinary Americans have the money to spend. The American people are the backbone of this economy. The idea that corporations, the wealthiest entities in this country, cannot be taxed now should be anathema to Americans everywhere. The country should be providing greater incentives for local businesses and small businesses to grow and provide good-paying jobs for our workforce. It should not be pandering to global corporations whose actions have demonstrated that they are more interested in lining the pockets of their CEOs and shipping money to Wall Street investors than in investing in American people and communities. Lisa