"What is needed is some kind of radical tax reform. The status quo, “business as usual,” is killing us. "

The only thing you said I like.

Again your hyperbole is sickening. No one believes "trillion dollar deficits are ok." (I could just as easily say you want trillion dollar deficits because you're a tax cut zombie for the rich. ) There is disagreement on how to fix those deficits. The school of thought that you need to kick start the economy in the short run and reduce the deficit with economic growth has history on its side. We've done it before many times.

No one thinks a $150b rich tax is going balance the budget. Well, maybe almost as many as believe we can balance the budget by cutting funding to NPR and the NEA, Yes we need tax reform and that includes raising the rate for the wealthy, as well as eliminating corporate welfare. I doubt you guys would raise taxes if the existence of the republic was threatened!

"Half the country getting social services"... and that includes SS and medicare right? Yeah we have a large elderly population (and certainly many of them do not need those programs, but most do). And we have a growing poor population. The top 400 families have as much wealth as the bottom 50%.