Let's break the stranglehold that foreign oil has on America - I ride my bike 10 miles every day and I suggest you give it a try as well. You'll get excercise, you'll lower greenhouse emissions, and with all the money you save on gas, you can buy a high performance knife from Cold Steel that will last a lifetime!

-Lynn C. Thompson
President, cold steel, inc.

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Bar Stool Economics
Suppose that everyday, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would be something like this:
The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.
The fifth would pay $1.
The sixth would pay $3.
The seventh would pay $7.
The eight would pay $12.
The ninth would pay $18.
The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.
So, that’s what they decided to do. The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve. "Since you all are such good customers," he said, "I’m going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20."
Drinks for the ten now cost just $80. The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay taxes so the first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free, but what about the other six men (the paying customers)? How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his "fair share"? They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33, but if they subtracted that from everyone’s share, then fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer. So, the bar owner suggested to be fair to reduce each man’s bill by roughly the same amount, the proceeded to work out each amount each should pay. An so: The fifth man, like the first four, now pays nothing (100% savings).
The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33% savings).
The seventh now paid $5 instead of $7 (28% savings).
The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12(25% savings).
The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59(16% savings).
Each of the six was better off then before and the first four continued to drink for free, but once outside the restaurant, the men begin to count their savings.
"I only $1 off $20," declared the sixth man. He pointed at the tenth man, "but he got $10!"
"Yeah, that’s right," exclaimed the fifth man. "I only saved a dollar too. It’s unfair that he got 10 times more than I!"
"That’s true!" shouted the seventh man. "Why should he get $10 back when I got only two? The wealthy get all the break!"
"Wait a minute," yelled the four men in unison. "We didn’t get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!"
The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up. The next night the tenth man didn’t show up for drink, so the nine sat down and had beer without him, but when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn’t have enough money between all of them for even half the bill! (The 10th man was originally paying $59 of $100, then $49 of $80). That, boys and girls, journalists and college professors, is how our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start drinking overseas where atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.


David R. Kamerschen, Ph.D. Professor of Economics, University of Georgia.
For those who understand, no explanation is needed. For those who do not understand, no explanation if possible.