• 5too@lemmy.world
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    2 days ago

    Why didn’t we ever reopen them?

    I mean, I know why we don’t now, but we had a few decades since Reagan of occasionally reasonable administrations…

    • phdepressed@sh.itjust.works
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      2 days ago

      Because you’d have to propose increasing taxes. Republicans/Reagan cut the top tax rate in half (70->35) and lucked into one of the best economic growths for a while as the Carter/Volker shock finally panned out and interest rates were dropped. It’s why Reagonmics and a trickle down economy were able to remain major Republicans platforms since then.

      So proposing a tax increase viewed as bad for the economy was a non-starter. The capture of both political parties to capitalism and business was probably more a kicked can from Mccarthy anticommunism stuff.

      • 5too@lemmy.world
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        2 days ago

        Im sure you’re right, but… Couldn’t we just take, like, one knob from one of our billion dollar fighter jets, and pay for mental and social services that way?

        Not even from every fighter of that type, just pick the one plane that’s always down for maintenance anyway and, like, lock the AC to one temperature or something. Surely that tiny bit of a multi billion dollar airframe could cover some worthwhile social services?