Obama's Language

The left, as exemplified by Obama's own website use words to mean things very different from what I think they mean. Here's a quote:

Obama will ask the wealthiest 2% of families to give back a portion of the tax cuts they have received over the past eight years to ensure we are restoring fairness and returning to fiscal responsibility.

Let's consider that this single sentence uses at least three words differently from what I think they mean.

Let's first consider the phrase "Obama will ask..." This is odd in two different ways. First, assuming this sentence implies a change in the tax code, no one will be asked to do anything. They will comply or face fines and/or imprisonment. Second, if there is to be a change in the tax code, President Obama will not be rendering the bill--his role in legislation of this nature is to sign or veto bills (understanding of course that Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi will be Obama's puppets in Congress, and that Obama's staff may very well draft the bill; the incestuous nature of executive and legislative branches being controlled by the same party is exposed here as evil, whether it be Democrats or Republicans in charge).

Next, the phrase "give back". This is a favorite phrase among the so-called progressives. When I donate to charity, I am giving. I am not giving back. Giving back implies that I was previously given the thing in question. A fiance' may give back an engagement ring, but my income was earned through hours of hard work and so having a portion of my income forcibly taken from me is definitely not the same as giving something back. Now, I'm not trying to discount someone who feels that they have truly received something, say from their community, and feel that giving something to that community for them represents "giving back". Indeed, I feel that my donations to Clemson University are in a way "giving back", since I attended Clemson on a full scholarship (Alumni Frank J. Jervey Scholarship). But paying taxes is in no way giving back, unless you believe that the government gave me my income in the first place [* more on that later].

Finally, we are told that raising taxes will "restore fairness". All I can say is that I have commented before on the very twisted meaning of the word fair that liberals seem to have when it comes to paying taxes. See Because they can afford it parts I and II. The top 1% pays 39.89% of income taxes collected and 41% of the US population will be outside the federal income tax system, essentially free-loading on on other half becuase they have zero or negative tax liability or do not even file a return.

* Federal budget law defines "tax expenditures" as "revenue losses attributable to provisions of the Federal tax laws which allow a special exclusion, exemption, or deduction from gross income or which provide a special credit, a preferential rate of tax, or a deferral of tax liability." Thus it seems that any income that the government lets you keep, the government considers to be a tax expenditure--they start with assuming they have 100% of your income, then count what they let you keep as something they "spent" (gave to you!).