I was talking about Tesla, the benefits to millionaires, and what a waste that is. Which you agree with, it seems. I will respond to misleading posts regarding oil and gas. It's critical that folks understand the facts.
It critical that people know the FACTS…which you keep wanting to change to prove your point.
You always seem to choose the lowest stat that suits your argument. You think that the 7% is a low pitiful profit and Exxon should still be given tax cuts.
My company had it’s best year ever last year. We had a profit of a little over 18% for a total revenue of $25 million. Our total revenue is less then 1% of oil industry tax incentives.
$98 BILLION in profit is HUGE. It’s more then most states budgets and many countries budgets. The profit my company made last year is less then what Bill Gates made in one week. But our profit was so HUGE because it was 18%. Give me a frikken break.
Great example of misleading information. Who made $98 Billion? Exxon made $32.5 B on $394 B in 2014 (8.25%). It’ll be much less this year, maybe $20 B on $285 B revenue.
So $18 million profit on $100 million sales (18%) is OK, but, say, $20 billion profit on $285 billion sales (7%) isn’t? Makes no sense to me, but ok, then we’re done here.
The VAST majority of people in this country do NOT own stocks (mainly lower income).
And whose fault is that, exactly? Our country does everything but bend over backwards to get people to fund an IRA or 401k. We offer tax credits of up to 50% of money invested, depending on AGI. BUT, you can lead a horse to water...
And whose fault is that, exactly? Our country does everything but bend over backwards to get people to fund an IRA or 401k
Less then 70% of all companies offer a 401k plan. Most lower income people have a hard enough time putting food on the table let alone find any money to put in an IRA. I’ve worked for several small companies that did NOT offer a 401K since they’ve been available.
Anyone with a pension, whole life insurance, or many other kinds of group investments owns stocks, indirectly through mutual funds, etc.
Again that would be less then half employees have any type of pension plan or 401k plan.
Great example of misleading information. Who made $98 Billion?
Your right. The $98 billion is for the oil industry as a whole. And Exxon only made $32 BILLION. And this isn’t just ONE year. The oil industry has had record setting (or near record setting) profits for YEARS.
Hmmm. I’m not going to argue statistics endlessly on who has a pension or stock or mutual funds but I am so sick and tired of the low income excuse. I spent a little time in the can plant in between jobs making bottle caps at $3.50 an hour which was the lowest pay rate for general labor. I started buying company stock as soon as they would let me and provided a 50% match. Most of the other guys in the plant also bought company stock big time. Some of the mechanics in the plant owned so much stock, the company paid them to go to the annual stock holders meeting in Philly.
I don’t mean to be uncaring for those finding themselves in a difficult economic position through no fault of their own, but you will always be poor if you don’t upgrade your skills, work hard, save money, invest money, don’t have kids as a teenager, don’t be a single parent, and for heavens sake, move if you can’t find a job, and get a car so you are mobile. Right now North Dakota is out of the question due to the oil bust, but still get the heck someplace else if things aren’t working out for you.
@Bing - There is no question that there are many people working who can easily afford buying stock, or IRA, or some kind of savings and don’t. They exist…I know they exist…I’ve seen it.
But that doesn’t take away from the FACT many people still can NOT afford IRA’s and mutual funds or stocks. I’ve seen it. I have relatives in that situation.
@Bing - Using your logic it seems to me that it must be possible to eliminate poverty in the US completely if all poor people got better job training, stopped heaving sex outside of marriage, and were willing to relocate every time their job was eliminated. It also follows, using your logic, that race or socioeconomic status plays no part in success. This logic is bolstered by the success of poor minority kids such as Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, John Rockefeller…uhh…hmmm…
Well, @bloody_knuckles, don’t forget Oprah Winfrey, Herman Cain, Don Thompson (McDonalds CEO), Colin Powell, Patrick Shoon Siong (Billionaire), Jin Sook and Do Won Chang (Korean immigrants that started Forever 21), Judy Faulkner (billionaire founder of Epic Systems), Ursula Burns (former Xerox CEO). All started poor or are minorities or both that are billionaires or current/former CEO’s. Success is defined by very hard work and a refusal to let failure stop your success.
@Mustangman - Great examples but they form a very small minority of self made millionaires/billionaires. Most minority kids have a much better chance of striking it rich as a sports star than by “hard work” and “refusal to fail”. We might not like it but it is a reality. Being white and male is a significant advantage, even today.
While it is true that there are more white male billionaires than women and minorities no one has proved a cause and effect. And no one really wants a definitive answer because they would rather hold to the causality they believe.
I think the exceptions disprove the theory that the deck is stacked because if that was so, they could not have succeeded. None should have succeeded who were not entertainers or athletes although those folks also worked very hard for their success but were also born gifted. They won the “life lottery” so to speak, much like being born into rich families.
Please…the “poor man can’t get a break” shtick is getting old. I LIVE in a working-class hood; until a few years ago, I lived in the ghetto. I KNOW what folks spend their money on; I know how well 40oz-ers and cigarettes sell. (Also a LOT of drugs get sold there–granted, much of it gets sold to out-of-towners coming in to score…but hardly all of it.) AND, don’t forget…I do their taxes, too.
Anybody who make funding an IRA a priority can put $50/wk aside if they forgo “conveniences” (i.e. all meals at home, library for entertainment, etc); however, few are willing to make the sacrifices necessary. “YOLO,” baby!
Just to keep this on topic, Tesla announced that they’ll also make a ‘stupid fast’ version of the yet-to-be-released Model X crossover, for the millionaires who needs ‘Falcon Doors’ on their $100k CUV:
Please...the "poor man can't get a break" shtick is getting old.
Re-read the posts. The poor man argument was to disprove the statement that it’s OK to give tax breaks to big oil because people will have investments in those companies and get it back. No one is making excuses for them. Just stating facts.
Bloody, I don’t know where you’ve been the last 20 years but being a 50 year old white male is a decided disadvantage to a minority female-regardless of qualifications. We’ve been hearing the same ole same ole for 50 years and its out of date.
Actually I kinda like the styling of that new Tesla. Won’t ever get one but it looks ok.
Drivers here in the SF Bay area like those Teslas. And I think the reason is b/c they are so quick off the line. They can get out in front of the pack after a red light, and that gets them to their destination sooner. In Silicon Valley especially, being first, even if it is just by a little bit, counts.
I asked a Tesla rep about those gullwing doors on the CUV at the Detroit auto show a few years ago. “Do you realize they can’t be opened INside a garage with the door open?”
The Tesla rep insisted they had studied it and, yes they could be opened inside a garage. I told her I had a 16 x 7 foot garage door that only had 7 ft 3 inches of head space when open and got a blank look. The gullwing door, when open looked very close to 7 1/2 feet high. Hmmm
So how tall is Elon Musk? Notice how far above his head the “Falcon” doors are. Anyone want to estimate how high that door is when open? Anyone want to guess how quickly after the first sale the Tesla X gets whacked by a garage door opening while the kids are getting in the back?
