On Federal funding for the City, it will never be enough. The Federal deficit is now 36 Trillion dollars, and the interest payments on that debt are the fastest growing segment of the budget. That Marquette, a small American town of 22,000 people, has become dependent on Federal largesse is emblematic of the debt crisis facing all of America. How did this happen? By complete failure of spending restraint. Now that the Federal gravy train has been stopped, it’s way past time for fiscal responsibility. OMB reports 2024 federal revenue of $15,000 per person and expenditures of $20,000 per person. Now do you see the problem? The solution is not higher federal taxes to pay for local services, as the top 1% already pay 40% of federal taxes and the top 5% paid 60% of the tax burden while 50% pay no federal income taxes. Our Federal, State and local governments have a spending problem, not a revenue problem, and it’s simply not sustainable.
$5 trillion in tax collection but the socialist government spends $7 trillion. Socialism has failed without exception for 150 years. We can hope we’ve reached the end now 🤔🙏🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
Sorry, I must have hit send. Some of our friends are in the same predicament. And what about all the young people working hard but at jobs that don’t pay as well as jobs in large cities, especially when they have school debts, maybe a child or two, and starting out is so difficult. We all want to stay here; it’s our home and we all love the city and its people. $300,000+ is too expensive for most of us.
$billionaires currently pay 40% of federal taxes. The next 49% of taxpayers pay the balance of the $5 billion dollars collected. The bottom 50% pay nothing. The average amount paid to the bottom 50% by the top 50% receive $50,000+ in GOVERNMENT benefits. GOOGLE it!!!8
I have been thinking of writing to you for weeks about the price of housing in Marquette. It seems to me from reading your informative columns that you think our housing is affordable, at least to people you know well. I disagree. My husband and I are a retired professional couple in our older mid-sized two story home in the city. We consider moving to a smaller (900+ sq ft) home on one floor with a small yard (but large enough for rhubarb and tomatoes) we don’t see such a place advertised. We’d need to find a place as well maintained as ours, for the price we’d sell our home.
On Federal funding for the City, it will never be enough. The Federal deficit is now 36 Trillion dollars, and the interest payments on that debt are the fastest growing segment of the budget. That Marquette, a small American town of 22,000 people, has become dependent on Federal largesse is emblematic of the debt crisis facing all of America. How did this happen? By complete failure of spending restraint. Now that the Federal gravy train has been stopped, it’s way past time for fiscal responsibility. OMB reports 2024 federal revenue of $15,000 per person and expenditures of $20,000 per person. Now do you see the problem? The solution is not higher federal taxes to pay for local services, as the top 1% already pay 40% of federal taxes and the top 5% paid 60% of the tax burden while 50% pay no federal income taxes. Our Federal, State and local governments have a spending problem, not a revenue problem, and it’s simply not sustainable.
$5 trillion in tax collection but the socialist government spends $7 trillion. Socialism has failed without exception for 150 years. We can hope we’ve reached the end now 🤔🙏🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
Sorry, I must have hit send. Some of our friends are in the same predicament. And what about all the young people working hard but at jobs that don’t pay as well as jobs in large cities, especially when they have school debts, maybe a child or two, and starting out is so difficult. We all want to stay here; it’s our home and we all love the city and its people. $300,000+ is too expensive for most of us.
when billionaires pay no taxes, there is a revenue problem
$billionaires currently pay 40% of federal taxes. The next 49% of taxpayers pay the balance of the $5 billion dollars collected. The bottom 50% pay nothing. The average amount paid to the bottom 50% by the top 50% receive $50,000+ in GOVERNMENT benefits. GOOGLE it!!!8
Hi, Brian.
I have been thinking of writing to you for weeks about the price of housing in Marquette. It seems to me from reading your informative columns that you think our housing is affordable, at least to people you know well. I disagree. My husband and I are a retired professional couple in our older mid-sized two story home in the city. We consider moving to a smaller (900+ sq ft) home on one floor with a small yard (but large enough for rhubarb and tomatoes) we don’t see such a place advertised. We’d need to find a place as well maintained as ours, for the price we’d sell our home.
Always nice to get a mention, but please correct the gallery name to Zero Degrees Gallery! You’ve always been supportive of us!
Corrected. Yikes, our editor is an idiot. I've just fired him.