Oh come on Mr. Trickle-down. This is hooey supported by the wealthy. Most of them invest their money, it never gets converted into anything concrete, and they like to spend it abroad as well. You yourself buy a lot off the internet, which would not be your local community.

The idea of redistribution is that the well-off help support those who are not so well-off. Maybe we don't see huge benefits ourselves, but others are helped by our money. If we're going to have a health system then I'd rather pay for an NHS and hope that it can be changed from within, rather than push for a privatised system. I'm happy to support people on benefit because many of them honestly want to be helped to get back to work when it's possible for them to do so. I'm also happy to support our basic services like education and policing.

Having said that, then I do believe there are fairer ways to tax people, and better ways to spend the money (i.e. an NHS that truly heals people, and a better public transport system). More should be paid through income tax, less through the "stealth taxes" that keep creeping up. And more of the taxes on a car should come out of petrol tax, which will more fairly charge people for the amount they are driving. The aristos should be taxed, taxed and taxed again so that they sell some or all of their land to people who will put it to better uses, and maybe we'll get rid of the lot of them altogether <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Guess I'm a typical Old Labourite. You're right, most Americans wouldn't understand that. I wouldn't have, until I came here. I'm not a gun totin' Commie Hitler-Stalin supporter guys, I just want this to be more of a fair society for everyone to live in.