Justice needed
To the Journal editor:
As part of celebrating Thanksgiving, we thank our revolutionaries who progressed justice for all by summarizing their theories and applying them to our income distribution.
President Franklin Delano Roosevelt described economic conditions by presenting data that revealed great differences, evaluated conditions by justice for all proving these great differences were unjust, and led our activist national government to progress worker economic rights for all workers, including business regulation, job, progressive expenditure and taxation, retirement security, unemployment insurance and union membership rights.
Martin Luther King Jr. described racial conditions by presenting data that revealed great differences, evaluated condition by justice for all proving these great differences were unjust, and helped our activist national government progress rights for all African Americans, including economic, educational, health care, housing, political and transportation rights.
Simone de Beauvoir described feminine and masculine conditions by presenting data that revealed great differences, evaluated conditions by justice for all proving these great differences were unjust, and helped our activist national government progress feminist rights for all women, including economic, educational and political rights.
Rachel Carson described environmental conditions by presenting data that revealed great unhealthy conditions, evaluated conditions by justice for all proving these great differences were unjust, and helped our activist national government progress environmental rights for all elements in nature, including fresh air, fertile soil, clean water and wide biodiversity rights.
After this summarization, we apply these ideas to our income distribution.
Based on data from our Census Bureau (2014), families in the highest 1 percent received 23 percent of our income, families in the highest fifth received 51 percent, families in the second fifth received 23 percent and families in the lowest three fifths received 25 percent.
Based on justice for all, these great differences are unjust because the highest fifth received twice the income of the lowest three fifths.
To help progress justice for all, families in the highest 1 percent pay an income tax rate of 80 percent, families in the highest fifth pay 40 percent, families in the second fifth pay 20 percent, families in the lowest three fifths pay no income tax and income tax deductions that don’t progress justice for all are eliminated.
Part of the revenue from income tax is used to develop our infrastructures so there are more high-paying jobs, and to increase Earned-Income Tax Credit so no one is in the lowest three fifths.
Justice for all.
Gordon Peterson
Marquette