TCTI: Too Crazy Too Ignore
 Dave Ross

Should you be making $45,000 more a year?

May 25, 2012 @ 11:44 am (Updated: 12:52 pm - 5/26/12 )

There's a popular series of talks on the web called the TED talks -- Technology, Entertainment, and Design, where really smart, successful people get 18 minutes to explain their world-changing ideas; the audience votes, and the best ones are posted on the web:

BUT There was some controversy recently over a speech which DID NOT make the cut.

"If it was true that lower taxes for the rich and more wealth for the wealthy led to job creation, today we would be drowning in jobs," says TED member Nick Hanauer.

This is Seattle venture capitalist Nick Hanauer, who made his fortune as an early investor in Amazon. And what he said about job creation didn't sit well with the curator of the TED series. Hanauer said that the key to job creation is more money in the hands of consumers:

"In this sense, an ordinary consumer is more of a job creator than a capitalist like me. That's why, when business people take credit for creating jobs it's a bit like squirrels taking the credit for creating evolution," continues Hanauer.

The talk was originally supposed to be posted in April, but it wasn't. And when a reporter for National Journal asked why, he was told that sometimes speeches are considered mediocre, or too partisan to make the cut, but in any case -- it's been posted now:

"If the typical American family still retained the same share of income that they did in 1970 they'd earn like $45,000 more a year. Imagine what our economy would be like if that were the case," says Hanauer.

See more of the talk here.

More Dave Ross

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Comments (89)


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  • ron prevost wrote...
    WOW - as of 8:45 am 5/26/12, no story from Dave yet.
    May 26, 2012 7:58 am
    So--- can we just start blogging about whatever ? .. Or should we vote on a topic. ... .................................... I'm kinda in favor of water boarding unicorns, but......
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  • Pressman wrote...
    Gee, Ron-
    May 28, 2012 2:16 am
    Mom upstairs has had your Captain Crunch ready to eat for over two minutes now- guess you are too wrapped up in trolling your way around this site to listen to her hollerin down the stairs...
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  • ron prevost wrote...
    Uh, pressman........
    May 28, 2012 8:49 am
    in case you never noticed, this thread started TWO DAYS ago. MYNW originally posted only a site name from Dave, but with no story ! I was all a good running joke, at least for the first couple of hours until they finally posted the story - or until Lawn got on. Whichever came first.
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  • cdbtx wrote...
    I'm good with the Water Boarding Unicorns
    May 26, 2012 8:39 am
    Wait.. do you mean CIA waterboarding or do you mean wake boarding... because it's darn near impossible to waterboard a unicorn...
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  • ron prevost wrote...
    And 40 years ago when we were training folks for E & E in Nam,
    May 26, 2012 8:49 am
    water boarding was a TRAINING tool , not real torture. Ah, the good old days............. ......................... But, hey, you might be right about unicorns - that horn and all.
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  • rational wrote...
    Stay on topic folks!
    May 26, 2012 9:40 am
    Oh...well, it's something to do with $48k...we could give it all over to the government and make a dent in the $80k per household the national debt has increased under Obama. Of course that won't really help much because they just keep dumping more debt on top. Here is a video that explains why raising taxes just won't work as a strategy to get rid of the debt...

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNF8HYh59Rs&list=FLE6lcfYqzQnLJEY5fpJVS4A&index=1&feature=plpp_video

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  • kata wrote...
    the lead in
    May 26, 2012 10:13 am
    says its about Nick Hanauer and it's likely referencing the quote "if the typical American family still retained the same share of income that they did in 1970, they’d earn like $45,000 more a year."
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  • rational wrote...
    kata
    May 26, 2012 11:44 am
    And once adjusting for the devaluation of the US dollar that's what...like ten bucks?

    Honestly, the dollar has lost it's value by about 96% from 1913. We went off the gold standard in 1971, so I suspect a significant share of that devaluation has transpired since 1970. Numbers vary, in part it depends on what you compare the dollar to index wise...gold appears to be the most commonly used index.

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  • William Lawn wrote...
    Thanks for the laugh, you moron
    May 26, 2012 12:23 pm
    Your "expert" can't even spell "Mathimatically" correctly.

    It is Mathematically.

    Good one "rational", just hilarious!

    Thanks!

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  • rational wrote...
    William Lawn
    May 26, 2012 3:54 pm
    That was a repost, not spelling from the speaker...but hey, I know you leftists are so committed to mindlessly marching in lockstep that facts, if you notice them at all, must be discarded as an annoyance rather than fact the facts.

    Did you actually watch the video? They walk through exactly what the left wants...eat the rich, take all of their money.

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  • kata wrote...
    I never load random YT pages
    May 26, 2012 5:13 pm
    but if you're referring to Bill Whittle's "Eat the Rich" he has his own channel.
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  • rational wrote...
    kata
    May 26, 2012 7:23 pm
    You're correct...I grabbed the video and wasn't paying attention to it being a bootleg copy. Doesn't matter, WL isn't interested in reality anyway.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • hpygolkyone wrote...
    Too Crazy Too Ignore?!..........
    May 26, 2012 10:19 am
    I thought maybe Dave ( or some clever intern ) had written today's blog in lemon juice.

    Being the crafty double agent I am, I place my new $3,000.00 iMac in my oven at 200 degrees to reveal today's secret message from Dave.

    MyNW.com now owes me one new iMac.

    Now THAT ladies and gentleman..........is Too Crazy Too Ignore.

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  • ron prevost wrote...
    well, I see at 3:50pm that Dave's story is now posted.
    May 26, 2012 3:00 pm
    Just when was that ? and did anyone really notice ?
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  • kata wrote...
    nope
    May 26, 2012 3:50 pm
    pretty much the Hatfields vs the McCoy's here. :)
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  • HPD 5-0 wrote...
    Sure...$45K more per yr would be fantastic. And if anyone deserves it, it's me.
    May 26, 2012 3:05 pm
    I'd take it, but I have the feeling the Dimocrats would then tax me for $55K more...
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  • William Lawn wrote...
    Check with your public employee union Half Pint
    May 26, 2012 3:09 pm
    They are in bed with the Dims.

    See what they can do for you.

    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • HPD 5-0 wrote...
    Mr William Yawn...Weak...REALLY weak...again.
    May 27, 2012 8:01 am
    I can assure you; we are not "in bed" w/ anyone.
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  • Lonestar wrote...
    If it's true high taxes lead to more jobs and balanced budgets
    May 26, 2012 3:57 pm
    California, Illinois, and NY would have 0% unemployment and ginormous budget surpluses.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • HPD 5-0 wrote...
    California, Illinois, and NY would have 0% unemployment and ginormous budget surpluses.
    May 27, 2012 7:55 am
    Indeed. But as pointed out above; facts do not matter to liberals.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • tlmbrt wrote...
    It takes BOTH
    May 26, 2012 7:21 pm
    an INNOVATOR or BUILDER to create a product, and DEMAND from CONSUMERS who want to buy the product. You need the CONSUMERS, yes. But you ALSO need people with MEANS (money) and VISION to build the factories that make the products! If you PUNISH those who build and create through high taxation, you DISCOURAGE them from starting or expanding businesses that create JOBS!! So a squirrel may not get credit for creating evolution, but without evolution you WOULDN'T HAVE ANY SQUIRRELS!
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • cdbtx wrote...
    Please ask
    May 26, 2012 7:40 pm
    Nick Hanauer to share his tax returns as well as the returns of Amazon - and how much taxes did they pay.. oh and btw.. how much did they contribute to the Obama campaign... much more than they paid in taxes.. little weird isn't it..
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  • tlmbrt wrote...
    Make Amazon pay
    May 27, 2012 7:41 pm
    higher taxes, and you will PAY MORE for your movies and books! Businesses don't actually pay taxes, they just PASS ALONG THE EXTRA COSTS to us, the consumers! So the idiots who want to SLAM businesses to pay for more freebies for lazy "occupiers" are actually asking US to pay for them! Another form of socialist REDISTRIBUTION OF WEALTH....
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