Comments on: Time To Go Galt

By: CJ

CJ — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 19:06:38 +0000

The special tax on AIG bonuses is unconstitutional because it is both a bill of attainder and an ex post facto (after the fact, retroactive) law. Bills of attainder are legislative acts that directly punish a person or group, thus usurping what are the preogatives of the courts (in American terms, the legislative branch infringing the powers of the judicial branch). That said, AIG are dirtball scum, insurance hustlers whose business model was taking in payments on policies they never intended to pay out on. They should have been put into bankruptcy, and the ringleaders should be in jail.

By: philosoraptor

philosoraptor — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 15:21:19 +0000

I’m sorry, it seems you’ve never heard of a metaphor. Let me make it clear: When you leave, there are lots of people who will gladly take your customer list and fill your vacancy – even if you convince your competitors to leave too (doubtful), *I’ll* start up a business to capitalize on the market you left behind. They’ll be easy markets to identify – you’ll already have done all the work. You’ll just be leaving behind business opportunities for everyone else.

This is why I wasn’t kidding; please do go Galt. It will simultaneously deliver the crippling blow to this ridiculous cult-like philosophy and possibly provide the stimulus we need to kick-start the small business economy with those of us that remain behind.

By: rebarbarian

rebarbarian — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 02:03:25 +0000

philosraptor. First of all, it is not a game, it’s life. Secondly, if those willing people could take my place, they would have already done so. Do you know the failure rate for business start-ups? Of course every socialist that gets elected to government, the first thing they want to do is start a government supported business.

By: philosoraptor

philosoraptor — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 23:03:19 +0000

You mean all the Objectividiots are going to leave? Willfully? What’s the downside?

Take your ball and go home. There are more than enough people willing to take your place in the game.

By: Nicola Timmerman

Nicola Timmerman — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 23:01:47 +0000

Because it’s a precedent for not honouring any contracts. Also why would anyone step forward to run companies if they face hearings from senators who practically spit in their face and witchhunt.

Don’t forget Obama received money from AIG for his presidential campaign. And so far most of his nominees are tax dodgers, so they can’t exactly throw the first stone.

By: Really?

Really? — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 21:57:22 +0000

I’ve read Atlas Shrugged. Tt was far from the best book I’ve ever read (the characters are cardboard and the plot simplistic). Still, I feel pretty confident that Rand would have catagorized a company sucking billions off the public tit as a parasite. So it’s hard to see how, after accepting huge amounts of public money, there can be any complaints about the government taxing back the bonuses it paid for. These people at AIG are certainly not Hank Reardens…

Then of course, there is this:

“If the senate approves this, and Obama signs it, (should face impeachment for doing so), we have a congress that has decided the US constitution no longer applies. And this is clearly forbidden in the constitution.”

Care to explain how this makes any sense?

By: Country Mamma

Country Mamma — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 21:38:56 +0000

I have an American friend who runs a very successful business that employs about fifty or so rather high paid folks not counting part timers. After all these Obama bills go thru he will have gone from just over 60% taxes to over the 90%. He is a Libertarian and he has told us he is shrugging, cashing out, closing his doors/business, not selling it to someone else, no sir, just closing his door, settling on this piece of farm land he bought years ago, planting veggies, raise some chickens, cows, horses, goats, do a little hunting and maybe some target practice and screw the big O and everyone else that wants yet another piece of him. He’s done.

He’s not the one