Is true socialism possible?

[scottycelt]

It is preferable to tax the richest at higher rates than to penalise the poorer members of society (something about camels and needles in your book ? )

Sadly, I've never written a book, MrGG, and, if I had, I can assure you that you'd know all about it!

[Simon]

This sounds very much like typical antisemitic propaganda.

...whereas it is simply a factual statement.

On the other hand, the practice of throwing about facile accusations that any mention of the activities of Jewish interest groups is ipso facto antisemitic propaganda is precisely the reason that such a pro-Israeli bias has been able to grow within the US body politic and federal services.

[Simon]

Sadly, I've never written a book, MrGG, and, if I had, I can assure you that you'd know all about it!

Careful scotty - GG & his lot will think you haven't "got" their attempts at being funny.

[Bryn]

It's amazing what lengths some well-healed 'Christians' will go to to evade Matthew's little homily.

[scottycelt]

It's amazing what lengths some well-healed 'Christians' will go to to evade Matthew's little homily.

Do you mean Christians who have become well-healed by going private instead of the NHS, Bryn ... ?

[Bryn]

Do you mean Christians who have become well-healed by going private instead of the NHS, Bryn ... ?

An Achilles "ouch"! How did that homophone get through?!

[Flosshilde]

Nobody has as yet answered the question of whether they consider it preferable to collect more money from lower taxes on the rich or less by 'soaking' them.

No.

[Lateralthinking1]

I would like to introduce some new percentages into the discussion.

The percentage of taxes I have paid during my entire lifetime on income at the tax rate appropriate to my bracket, the percentage of taxes I have evaded and the percentage of taxes I have avoided. They are 100%, 0% and 0% respectively.

If anyone can't meet that standard, I will gladly travel to the airport to wave them goodbye.

[Mandryka]

And what's more .... He's NORTHERN!

In what part of the north can Mottingham be found?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denis_Healey

[scottycelt]

I would like to introduce some new percentages into the discussion.

The percentage of taxes I have paid during my entire lifetime on income at the tax rate appropriate to my bracket, the percentage of taxes I have evaded and the percentage of taxes I have avoided. They are 100%, 0% and 0% respectively.

If anyone can't meet that standard, I will gladly travel to the airport to wave them goodbye.

And their money as well ...

I would simply demand that our grossly incompetent rulers get their act together and close the legal loopholes.

Those who evade tax illegally should be hunted down, sent to prison, and be fined such an amount that the exchequer ends up rolling in it.

Sorted!

[amateur51]

In what part of the north can Mottingham be found?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denis_Healey

His family moved to Keighley when he was five, Mandy and he was educated at Bradford Grammar. He represented a Leeds constituency from 1952 to 1992. That's pretty Northern, I'd say

[scottycelt]

No.

'No' to which of the two available options, Flossie ... ?

[Lateralthinking1]

I don't particularly like Denis Healey and I have been known to enjoy records by Robert Plant. However.........during Led Zeppelin's 1975 and 1977 concert tours, Robert Plant facetiously dedicated the song "In My Time of Dying" to Healey for the tax exile issues the band was facing. Audiences were intended to have sympathy.

While tax rates then were exceptionally high - arguably more than twice what they are now - Plant was never killed off by Healey. In fact, he is 64 and some estimate he is worth £85 million pounds. This is worth bearing in mind when today's mega rich are crying wolf - and let's face it. George Osborne is no Little Red Riding Hood.

[Mandryka]

His family moved to Keighley when he was five, Mandy and he was educated at Bradford Grammar. He represented a Leeds constituency from 1952 to 1992. That's pretty Northern, I'd say

He used his perceived 'northernness' to work his way up the Labour Party hierarchy, where inverted snobbery counts for so much. In actual fact, he's about as northern as Frankie Howerd (on the same street as whom he was born), though a lot less funny.

Undoubtedly, the worst Prime Minister that never was.

[Mandryka]

I don't particularly like Denis Healey and I have been known to enjoy records by Robert Plant. However.........during Led Zeppelin's 1975 and 1977 concert tours, Robert Plant facetiously dedicated the song "In My Time of Dying" to Healey for the tax exile issues the band was facing. Audiences were intended to have sympathy.

While tax rates then were exceptionally high - arguably more than twice what they are now - Plant was never killed off by Healey. In fact, he is 64 and some estimate he is worth £85 million pounds. This is worth bearing in mind when today's mega rich are crying wolf - and let's face it. George Osborne is no Little Red Riding Hood.

Jethro Tulll's Ian Anderson waged a war of words with Robert Plant via the music mags in the 70s. This originated when IA claimed that Zep would be a great band, 'if they could write proper songs' - forgetting that Plant was responsible for most of Zeppelin's lyrics (which tended to be dreadful). Plant took great umbrage at this.

Later on, when Percy was complaining about his tax issues, Anderson berated him for 'misleading' his fans over the amount he was making. 'I earn as much in a week as a very successful bricklayer', said Anderson, somehwhat mysteriously, 'which is a lot.' To which, Plant responded: 'Well, he writes songs like a bricklayer, too.'

Personally, I think Led Zeppelin provided a rather marvellous and colourful soundtrack to the drabness of 70s Britain and, for that, they deserved to be rewarded.