commonsense answers to 50 questions about government, taxes, business, and households /
First Statement of Responsibility
Michael L. Walden.
.PUBLICATION, DISTRIBUTION, ETC
Place of Publication, Distribution, etc.
Westport, Conn. :
Name of Publisher, Distributor, etc.
Praeger,
Date of Publication, Distribution, etc.
2005.
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION
Specific Material Designation and Extent of Item
1 online resource (x, 205 pages) :
Other Physical Details
illustrations
INTERNAL BIBLIOGRAPHIES/INDEXES NOTE
Text of Note
Includes bibliographical references (pages 185-202) and index.
CONTENTS NOTE
Text of Note
pt. 1. Economic questions about what government does, what government doesn't do, and how government spends our money -- 1. Has government growth been out of control? -- 2. Will the national debt sink our economic future? -- 3. Do budget deficits increase interest rates? -- 4. Can government spending be cut by eliminating waste? -- 5. Does government spend too much, or not enough, on the poor? -- 6. Does war help the economy? -- 7. Does more spent on education pay off in student achievement? -- 8. Has the social security surplus been stolen? -- 9. Is social security going bankrupt? -- 10. Should our money be backed by gold? -- 11. Should government enforce a living wage? -- 12. Should government control the prices of necessities? -- 13. Should government pay businesses to create jobs? -- 14. Can government create prosperity? -- pt. 2. Economic questions about how much taxes are paid, who pays taxes, and the fairness of taxes -- 15. Do we pay 60% to 80% of our income in taxes? -- 16. Does a tax bracket of 40% mean the government takes 40% of your income? -- 17. Can cutting tax rates increases tax revenues? -- 18. Will a tax cut of $1 create 47 to $10 of new income? -- 19. Do corporations pay too little in taxes? -- 20. Would rich investors benefit from a flat tax? -- 21. Is the sales tax regressive? -- 22. Do the rich get a break on social security taxes? -- 23. Has the tax penalty for marriage been ended?
Text of Note
pt. 3. Economic questions about what business does and why and how that affects jobs, consumers and the country -- 24. Is American manufacturing dying? -- 25. Are low-paying jobs replacing high-paying ones? -- 26. Are companies outsourcing good-paying jobs? -- 27. Will free trade destroy our economy? -- 28. Can U.S. workers compete with low-paid foreign workers? -- 29. Do countries prosper only if they run a trade surplus? -- 30. Is a "strong" dollar good and a "weak' dollar bad? -- 31. Are profits bad? -- 32. Does business make obscene profits? -- 33. Does big business control the economy? -- 34. Can pro sports teams and facilities hit economic home runs? -- 35. Why are pro sports stars paid so much for playing a game? -- 36. Are we running out of farmers, farmland, and soon, food? -- 37. Are gas prices at an all-time high? -- 38. Do big oil companies manipulate oil supplies and gas prices? -- 39. Should we become energy shelf-sufficient? -- 40. Is immigration hurting our economy? -- pt. 4. Economic questions about how households live and how they earn and spend money -- 41. Is everything more expensive today (or, should you wish for the "good old days")? -- 42. Does it take two incomes for families to get ahead today? -- 43. Are Americans drowning in debt and not saving? -- 44. Do women earn less than men? -- 45. Are the rich getting richer and everyone else getting poorer? -- 46. Is poverty getting worse? -- 47. If it saves one life, is it worth the cost? -- 48. Can families afford college? -- 49. Would importing drugs lower their prices? -- 50. Can government lower consumers' health costs?
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SUMMARY OR ABSTRACT
Text of Note
Budget deficits, gas prices, health care costs, social security, job security ... Anxiety over the economy pervades our daily lives--from reports on the early morning newscasts to gossip around the water cooler to dinner table debate. Yet most citizens are woefully ignorant when it comes to understanding how the economy works and how to interpret the impact of policies and business decisions. It's easy to slip into generalities: government spending is wasteful, taxes are too high, good-paying jobs are being shipped overseas, Americans don't save enough. Other issues become hijacked by political.