VAT

Today in the NYT, Catherine Rampell discusses how it works. Then she says that it will never happen because both sides of the isle have promised no new taxes. It's a great read but her conclusion about it never happening is frustrating. Taxes have been treated as a hot potato. Nobody likes hearing about tax increases, but lots of people like hearing about entitlement increases. For a country that spent the last 30 years aquiring stuff on credit, this disconnect about where the money for entitlements comes from isn't surprising. Both the American people and the government have been spending and spending and not worrying about where the money comes from (except when it's politically damaging to the other party) and this is going to come to a head at some point in the future when the baby boomers cash in on social security and medicare. Baby Boomers day of reckoning is coming, and it won't be pretty for any of us.

Matt Tiabbi's latest from Rolling Stone is now online: Obama's Big Sellout

Mother Jones has a great follow-up to Tiabbi's piece.