So, if Republicans want to take us back to the 1950's,

[NashvilleLefty]

what were the tax rates again in the 50's?

[Lydia Leftcoast]

1. They want to take us back much farther than that

The early 1900s at least, since many of them object to the income tax, which was enacted in 1913, not to mention unions, racial and sexual equality, environmental protection, health and safety regulations, etc.

[Ken Burch]

15. They want to go back further than the 1890's, actually...

These people never liked the anti-trust laws...or the Pure Food And Drug Act.

They DO want 1950's grooming codes, though(which would make us look like a Western version of North Korea if actually applied).

[The Wielding Truth]

27. Face it. They just want to dismantle our democracy and establish a plutocracy.

[reteachinwi]

28. The 1450's occurred to me.

No science, no unions, only aristocrats and churches.

[no_hypocrisy]

30. Feudal Law

[riverbendviewgal]

2. I bring that up all the time to my rw brother

He extols the good old days of the 50s and 60s. When I bring up the tax rate he never responds.

[Scuba]

3. Nope, 1850's with any non-property owners declared slaves.

[JoePhilly]

18. YUP ... the 1850s are their target.

[pansypoo53219]

4. weren't the KNOW NOTHINGS from the 1800's?

[Beartracks]

29. Some must have time-travelled to the GOP of the future...

... a la Jules Verne.

=====================

[Agnosticsherbet]

5. The Society for Conservative Anchronism wants to recreate the 1950's

as they think it was, not the way it really was.

[Fritz67]

9. Exactly

It's one of the delusional things you have to believe to be a Republican today:

* The 1950's were the absolute best time in human history because taxes were low, unions were weak, and homosexuals didn't exist.

[democrat52]

6. The 1950's

Many people agree that the 1950's was the best decade in American history. We had just won the largest war in human history and we came out as a super power. We also where in an economic boom and we had a republican as president good ole Dwight D.

[Cirque du So-What]

7. What was the complexion and sex of those who thought the fifties were sofa king great?

During that time, millions of Americans were still suffering under the yoke of racism and segregation. Sexism was rampant and those who stood to benefit from the buildup of the military-industrial complex ginned-up hysteria against communism. People were having sex, doing drugs, and killing each other in the 1950s, but you couldn't tell it from what passed for entertainment in the mass media. Yeah, it was a paradise alright...a peckerwood paradise.

[nadinbrzezinski]

12. And the strongest union movement

And 90% tax rates for the top.

(There were a few problems, but Ike would be thrown out of the modern RNC just on his taxation alone)

[Initech]

8. They want to take us back to this weird 50s Honeymooners / Dick Van Dyke era

Last edited Sun Jan 13, 2013, 09:17 PM - Edit history (1)

That never existed in the first place!!!!

[Raine]

11. The only part that existed was like when Ralph would holler at Alice "one of these days

bang, zoom to the moon" with his fist in the air. I can't stand the Honeymooners, one the stations METV (that stands for memoriable entertainment television) was showing them recently.

[Initech]

17. If you saw Bill Maher's special "But I'm Not Wrong" - he rails off on the Honeymooners types.

If you didn't here it is:

[Raine]

24. I hadn't seen it, THANKS! nt

[Ken Burch]

14. There's a REASON that, even IN the Fifties, those shows were listed as "comedy".

And that reason is that nobody actually lived like those folks...OR the Ricardos...OR the Cleavers. And the producers had to use a laugh track to GET people to laugh at the "jokes".

[Populist_Prole]

10. Or the same percentage of unionized employees or same ratio of finance to real industry?

I'm guessing they'll pass on that too.

[Ken Burch]

13. No, no, no...not the 1950's...the 1590's.

They want mass illiteracy, Good Queen Bess, religious persecution, and a life expectancy of 40 for the average peasant.

[rustydog]

16. Top tax rate was 70% to 92 %

Yes! let us go back in time! Where's my Delorean?

[PennsylvaniaMatt]

19. As the President said in a debate with Romney....

"The Republicans want to take us back to the foreign policies of the 1980s, the social policies of the 1950s, and the economic policies of the 1920s"

Sums up the entire party!

[freethought]

20. It's not just the tax rates, it's the social climate that they believe existed as well.

Men went to work, women stayed at home and did housework is dresses and pearls. Homosexuals stayed in the closet, likely for their entire lives. Kids were obedient, unquestioning, and did what they were told. They did not smoke weed, drink, or say nasty swear words when their parents were not around. And they didn't ever, ever, ever have sex before marriage. People did not question the activities of their government or inquire as to what their elected officials were doing in their country's name. Family conflicts, bad marriages, were strictly kept behind a wall of secrecy. Husbands and wives who hated the other's guts did not get divorces because the neighbors may talk. Everyone went to church on Sunday. It was Ozzie and Harriet, Father Knows Best, and Leave it to Beaver all rolled into one. This is the America that some conservatives want to bring back.

Too bad it was all an illusion.

[samsingh]

21. i hear they were huge

[meow2u3]

22. PBO said it best during the 3rd debate against Rmoney

Republicans want the foreign policies of the 1980's; the social policies of the 1950's; and the economic policies of the 1920's.

I disagree slightly. Repukes want the social and economic policies of the 1850's, including relegalizing slavery and using women as brood mares for the state.

[HeiressofBickworth]

23. I've recommended it before

and in this thread seems appropriate to mention it again. The book, The Way We Never Were.

[Motown_Johnny]

25. more like the 20s

[nyquil_man]

26. Consider this: The top tax bracket in the 50s kicked in at about 2 million in current dollars.

During the Second New Deal, the top rate kicked in at the equivalent of $76 million.

And President Obama's 'soaking the rich'? Ha. Pull the other one; it's got bells on it.