The stock market keeps hitting record highs, but big businesses aren't putting those profits back into our economy. A recent article in the New York Times said that corporate investment still hasn't bounced back to precrisis levels, let along made up for the lost ground from the record lows of 2009. If firms would invest at the same levels that they did during the previous decade, they could boost our economy by about $220 billion dollars annually, and possibly create another two million jobs.

 

When a business buys a new piece of equipment, they immediately provide more income to the manufacturer. However, they also make it easier for that manufacturer to hire more workers, and they make their own employees more productive. That single purchase has a ripple effect throughout our economy, but it doesn't happen when corporations hoard their cash. According to the New York Times, there is little incentive to purchase new equipment to improve productivity when businesses can easily get more cheap labor. As wages go up and fewer people are looking for jobs, that new equipment starts to look like a better deal.

 

Congress has the ability to encourage this investment through tax policy, but many of our lawmakers have no real interest in stimulating the economy. Republicans think slow growth and high unemployment are a great excuse to cut taxes, despite the fact that lower rates have never given us the economic boost that they predicted. In fact, we need to do the exact opposite to fix this problem. We need a progressive tax system that encourages investments over dividends. Let's take our economy back, and force big business to put the needs of our nation ahead of corporate greed.

 

-Thom

 

(What do you think? Tell us here.)

 

Tonight on The Big Picture on RT TV at 7pm and 10pm... Big Picture Rumble and Conversations with Great Minds (check your local listings for stations or stream at RT or Free Speech TV, and catch past shows on Youtube)

 

Have a question or comment for Thom? Grab your phone, hit record and send your video to YourTakeMyTake@gmail.com and we may air it on "The Big Picture."

 

Big Picture Rumble:
- Patrick Hedger, American Encore  
- Joe Madison, The Joe Madison Show  
- Kevin Martin, Project 21  

 

Conversations with Great Minds:
- Miriam Yeung, Women for Common Sense Immigration Reform / National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum      
- Mary Small, Jesuit Refugee Service USA  
- Oscar Chacon, National Alliance of Latin American & Caribbean Communities (NALACC)  

  

Friday's Daily Stack 

Hour One: If it's Friday, it's "Brunch With Bernie"... the honorable Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) joins Thom with all the news from our nation's capitol and as always he'll be spending the hour taking your calls and answering your questions too...
Follow Bernie:     campaign site.

Article: "Sanders Tells Letter Carriers USPS 'Not Going Broke'" by Sen. Bernie Sanders.

Article: "Postal Service Revenue Rising" by Sen. Bernie Sanders.

Article: "USPS to close up to 82 more processing plants in 2015" by Post&Parcel.

Article: "Chairman Sanders Details VA Proposal" by Sen. Bernie Sanders.

Article: "Sanders Statement on Veterans Legislation Negotiations" by Sen. Bernie Sanders.

Article: "Walgreen Weighs Riding Tax-Inversion Wave" by Paul Ziobro.

Article: "DeFazio Fights For Full Funding of Fuel Reduction Program To Prevent Catastrophic Wildfires" by Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-OR).

Article: "Energy Committee Passes Wyden Eastside Forest Bill" by Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore.

Article: "Sherman Antitrust Act", 1890.

Article: "US House committee votes to safeguard Saturday mail delivery" by Post&Parcel.

Article: "Anwar al-Awlaki" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Eric Cantor, Paul Ryan & Kevin McCarthy: Plot To Sabotage US Economy with Frank Luntz" by keepemhonest.

Article: "FCC Declares "Zapple Doctrine" Unenforceable; Affirms Broadcaster Discretion Regarding Programming Content" by Ari Meltzer, Kathleen A. Kirby and Kathryne Dickerson.

Article: "Fairness Doctrine " by Wikipedia.

Hour Two: How to Build a Powerful People's Movement
- Reverend William J. Barber, North Carolina NAACP.

Article: "How to Build a Powerful People's Movement" by Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II.

Article: "Community leaders outline plans to save Vidant Pungo Hospital" by Josh Birch.

Article: "Gov. McCrory: Best to Gradually Reform North Carolina's Medicaid System" by Kathryn Mobley.

 

Case: "Buckley v. Valeo", 1976.

Case: "First National Bank Of Boston V. Bellotti", 1978.

Letter: "Letter to John Holmes" by Thomas Jefferson, Monticello, Apr. 22, 1820. "...we have the wolf by the ear, and we can neither hold him, nor safely let him go ... my only consolation is to be, that I live not to weep over it"

Article: "Bush Administration Lawsuit Hearing Scheduled for Sept. 11th" by Quiet Mike.

Article: "Why 2014 Is a Major Election Year for Marijuana Reform" by Paul Armentano.

Article: "Women's Suffrage Timeline State by State" by Jone Johnson Lewis.

Article: "Tommy Douglas" by Wikipedia.

Site: Arctic News.

 

Talk Radio News Segment:
- Victoria Jones 

Article: "Obama to Urge Central American Leaders to Slow Wave of Migrants" by Michael D. Shear and Ashley Parker.

Article: "U.S. Considering Refugee Status for Hondurans" by Frances Robles and Michael D. Shear.

Article: "Dan Pfeiffer: Don't 'discount' threat to impeach" by Sarah Smith.

Article: "Poll: Majority Opposed To Both Impeachment And Lawsuit" by TRNS.

Article: "Israel Rejects Kerry-Brokered Ceasefire Agreement" by Nicholas Salazar.

Article: "How VA Reform Fell Apart In Less Than 4 Days" by Sam Stein.

Article: "TRNS News Notes- 7/24" by Victoria Jones.

Article: "TRNS News Notes- 7/25" by Victoria Jones.

Site: "Goats for the old Goat".

Site: Governor Free Don Siegelman.

Hour Three: 50 miles to go to DC...(GOP Mayor walks 350 miles for Medicaid Expansion)
- Mayor Adam O'Neal (R-Bellhaven, NC), Save Our Hospital 

Video: GOP mayor's plea for Medicaid expansion.

Video: The Man with the Plan to Save Belhaven's Hospital .

Article: "Bob Zellner" by J Kile.

Video: In Memory of Portia Gibbs: No more deaths for lack of a hospital.

 

Site: "The Fast Diet".

Book: Mucusless Diet Healing System: Scientific Method of Eating Your Way to Health by Arnold Ehret.

 

Book: "Cracking the Code: How to Win Hearts, Change Minds, and Restore America's Original Vision" by Thom Hartmann.

Article: "Transcript: Cracking The Code 01: Competence. 8 Dec 2006" by Thom Hartmann.

 

Book: "Unequal Protection: The Battle to Save Democracy" by Thom Hartmann

Book: "Unequal Protection: How Corporations Became "People" - And How You Can Fight Back" by Thom Hartmann - new updated version out now!

Law: "Tillman Act of 1907".

Law: "Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002" (McCain-Feingold).

Law: "McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission", 2014.

Site: Move to Amend

Site: "Public Citizen".

Case: "Dred Scott v. Sandford", 1857.

Site: Washington State Coalition to Amend the Constitution (WAmend).

Site: Irene Bowling for State Senate.

Article: "Greenpeace and EFF launch protest blimp over NSA data center in Utah" by Reuters.

Article: "Big Lie: America Doesn't Have #1 Richest Middle-Class in the World: We're Ranked 27th!" by Les Leopold.

Event: July 31 - August 3, Sacramento, CA: "Occupy National Gathering 2014 - NATGAT 2014".

       

Monday on The Thom Hartmann Program, 12-3pm ET 

With another botched state sponsored execution this week...isn't it time to abolish the death penalty once and for all? I'll challenge conservative Nadra Enzi from Project 21...

 

Plus, the best of the rest of the news...all the information you won't be hearing from the corporate owned news media...

 

Together with your calls right here on...

 

The Thom Hartmann Program, Occupying The Media 3 hours a day 5 days a week" for "we the people"

 

And don't forget...Democracy is NOT a spectator sport...it begins with you...

Free excerpt, read book for free at Truthout, buy the book!

    

Thank you for being part of our ever growing community for News, Debate and Opinion on the Thom Hartmann Program.

 

Click here to subscribe to the Thom Hartmann Newsletter.
 

Sincerely,

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Pre-order The American Revolution of 1800 by Dan Sisson with Thom Hartmann at Amazon or Barnes & Noble now!

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Vote here!

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Buy Thom's newest book now!
Also on Kindle

"Crash of 2016" website

Watch Thom on: - MSNBC's The Cycle
- CNN's Crossfire
- Democracy Now!

The Rise of the American Taliban

Geeky Science - Treating Cancer with Cat Poop?

Your Country is Just NOT That Into You

Another Botched Execution

Why Does GOP FL Gov Rick Scott Support Child Abuse?

The Rise of the Bankster Landlord

Should Washington DC Get Statehood?

Crazy Alert - Here's How To Re-Use Condoms

Lone Liberal - Stop messing with DC representatives!

Lone Liberal - United is moving to a "fast food" worker pay

Time for CEOs To Pee in a Cup...

Full Show 7/24/14: Another Botched Execution

Thom discusses just how corrupt Florida Governor Rick Scott is with Attorney and Radio Host Mike Papantonio and the latest botched execution with Diann Rust-Tierney of the National Coalition to Abolish The Death Penalty. Thom takes viewer video questions and comments in "Your Take, My Take Live" and in tonight's "Daily Take" Thom discusses how 17th century religious extremism is alive and well in America.

50 miles to go to DC: GOP Mayor walks for Medicaid Expansion

Paul Ryan's 'Southern Strategy' for the Poor

Brunch with Bernie - July 25, 2014

Ukraine: It's More Complicated Than you Think...

Hey Pete Sessions, We Get it!

Rick Scott and Private Prison Horrors

Rep Andy Harris Wants to rep DC Voters, Here we are...