Calling the Universe
Nov. 27th, 2010 02:45 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
catsittingstillweirdsister needs help. The problems with asthma she mentioned in her last post but one put her in the emergency room. Again. She is okay, but she is looking at an emergency room bill brought on by not having the money to just go to the doctor, and putting it off too long when she was sick, dammit.
What I'm hoping is that we, her friends, can come up with enough money to pay the emergency room bill plus set two or three hundred dollars aside for an office visit plus prescriptions for the next time.
My corner of the Universe has done what it can this month. But the Universe has many corners. It's positively polygonal. If you can't spare 50$ it's worth sending 20 or 10 or 5.
She doesn't want people to impinge on their own needs to help her meet hers. But if you have a little extra, here's someplace it could do a lot of good.
I don't feel comfortable putting her address on the net without her permission --though I will update this post promptly if she says I should. In the meantime, comment here and I'll send you a private message with it.
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no subject
Date: 2010-11-27 08:47 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-11-27 10:42 pm (UTC)Thanks for being willing to help!
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Date: 2010-11-27 08:16 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-11-27 08:40 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-11-28 01:27 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-11-28 01:15 pm (UTC)Weirdsister and Georgism
Date: 2010-11-27 09:25 pm (UTC)Meanwhile, I understand that you don't want to read 571 pages of 19th century prose on a subject that doesn't fascinate you, but this article http://www.progress.org/2010/fold692.htm (http://www.progress.org/2010/fold692.htm) by Dr. Fred Foldvary explains why the so-called stimulus didn't work (contrary to Dr. Krugman, the problem is not that it wasn't big enough), and what we can do instead.
Finally, I believe in trying to help those in need, even if you should denounce the article, and run for President of the Richard Ely* Fan Club.
*Early 20th century anti-Georgist economist, took money from real estate interests to found the academic field of real estate economics, and pretend that land was just like things made by human effort.
Re: Weirdsister and Georgism
Date: 2010-11-27 10:18 pm (UTC)Re: Weirdsister and Georgism
Date: 2010-11-28 01:19 pm (UTC)I read the article. Moving to a tax system entirely based on property taxes on land strikes me as a major economic shift. That would mean I could be as rich as Bill Gates and pay not a penny in taxes as long as I rent? Except that rents will be much, much higher? Have to think about that.
Re: Weirdsister and Georgism
Date: 2010-11-28 10:15 pm (UTC)The tax on the land under a big house and yard in a good neighborhood is likely to be much more than the tax on a small lot in a poorer neighborhood. There are studies showing that a land-only tax is much more progressive than the usual land-and-buildings property tax.
Rents would probably not be much, much higher. Land rents already represent the advantage of particular plots of land, so taxes cannot be passed on to the tenant. Suppose you can raise 20 bushels of wheat on an acre of marginal land, available for free, but if you want to rent an acre of more fertile land where you can produce 30 bushels, you have to pay 10 bushels to the landlord. If a land value tax is now imposed, so the landlord has to pay 9 bushels in tax, he cannot charge you 19 bushels in rent. If he tries, you can go to the marginal land, and pay no tax or rent, instead.
The same principle applies to urban land, mineral loand, etc. Land value taxation redirects to public use what is in effect a private tax levied by landowners.
Most people anywhere near as rich as Bill Gates in fact got that way at least partly through owning valuable land or other special privileges, so let them pay the pubic for their enjoyment of those privileges. And let them not have to pay for what they contribute by their own efforts. If you make millions through sales of your CD's, then good for you; you should be free to keep it. If oil is discovered under your land, through no merit of your own, why should you get rich off the royalties?
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Date: 2010-11-27 10:11 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-11-27 10:22 pm (UTC)In the meantime I'll give you what I know.
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Date: 2010-11-28 01:19 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-11-27 10:38 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-11-27 11:28 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-11-28 01:19 pm (UTC)what's the address
Date: 2010-11-27 11:10 pm (UTC)Re: what's the address
Date: 2010-11-27 11:29 pm (UTC)I've sent the message.
Re: what's the address
Date: 2010-11-28 01:20 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-11-28 02:33 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-11-28 12:52 pm (UTC)no subject
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Date: 2010-11-28 08:59 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-11-28 10:39 pm (UTC)