Take the Rich off Welfare (Paperback)

~ (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Thank God the U.S. government has begun to cut funding of the arts, humanities, and social services ... but what are they going to do with all that surplus cash? Although the popular media has been largely mum about it, most of the welfare payments go to large corporations in the form of tax write-offs, subsidies, and plain old handouts. This frightening and enlightening book by the editor of The Tucson Comic News (a monthly collection of comic strips and panels) traces the flow of money into such worthy projects as subsidizing nuclear power plants (the last one was finished in 1973, but that doesn't stop the U.S. government from spending $7.1 billion a year on this vapor industry), tax breaks for the tobacco industry ($41 million last year), and corporate expense account write-offs ($5.5 billion last year). Read it and weep. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Description

When the first version of this book came out in 1996, on the heels of "Welfare Reform," it was received with great popular acclaim. As Jim Hightower put it, "At last, the real welfare scandal [is] revealed in one handy little -volume."

But the scandal was still in the making. The total amount of taxpayers' money going to subsidize corporations and rich individuals has grown from about $448 billion to over $800 billion-and the amount of that tax money that comes from those flush companies and individuals continues to shrink.

In this greatly expanded and updated version of Take the Rich off Welfare, Mark Zepezauer still details who's on the government dole and how much they're getting. This time around, though, he has slowed down his rapid firing of the latest names and numbers in order to reveal how it all works. Using accessible language and revealing graphics, he takes the time to explain how programs once intended to profit the public have been warped to benefit only the corporate bottom line; how administrations manipulate the tax code to slide their extortion from the bottom half past congressional oversight; and how the politicians from both parties employ budget doubletalk and paper trickery to make it look as if the economy isn't being sucked further into a sinkhole in order to line the pockets of the few.

A prolific writer of humorous but cutting analyses of government policy and its fallout, Zepezauer provides us with the tools we need to expose the political chicanery of current and past administrations, and make it much more difficult for politicians to play Three Card Monte with our money and our future. To the rallying cry of fiscal conservatives who claim that government must shrink, Zepezauer offers an easy answer. Shrink you.

Mark Zepezauer has worked as a journalist, editor and publisher since 1985. His articles, columns and reviews have appeared in the Village Voice, In These Times and the Arizona Daily Star. Zepezauer also wrote two Real Story books (now published by South End Press): The CIA's Greatest Hits (1994) and the first version of Take the Rich Off Welfare (1996), which have sold over 25,000 and 22,000 copies respectively.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: South End Press; Expanded edition (April 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0896087069
• ISBN-13: 978-0896087064
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #839,825 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Enraging and revealing study of subsidies,etc. to the rich., February 5, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Take the Rich Off Welfare (Real Story Series) (Paperback)

This is the most comprehensive summary of tax write-offs, subsidies and other welfare schemes favoring the affluent and powerful that I have ever encountered. Well documented! Should enrage the average tax payer.

26 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Short and to the point!, September 26, 2000

By	Chad Bagley "Chad" (Shanghai China/Provo, UT) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Take the Rich Off Welfare (Real Story Series) (Paperback)

The next time some smug nabob starts muttering under his/her breath about the drain on our economy caused by the proverbial `welfare mother' (you know, the one that's driving the Cadillac), you can put em' in their place armed with the wealth of info contained in this short but well written little book.

As `Take the Rich Off Welfare' aptly points out, welfare really does suck a lot of money from our treasury, but it's not the poor and needy in this country that benefits from this bonanza. As a matter of fact the word `wealthfare' is more applicable, because that's who's really benefiting- the wealthy.

Very brief, but meticulously researched and with sources to back up every fact, `Take the Rich off Welfare' is a great introduction to the big wide world of graft in America. If you've ever been curious about who has their foot in the back door of the treasury- check out this fine book.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars awesome, October 12, 2008

By	A. O'Halloran (Toledo, Ohio) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Hope he updates this after Bush leaves office since there'll be much more governmental waste to report on! Tis book made me laugh, cry and want to vomit at many occasions to hear about the wasteful spending and tax breaks for the rich and superrich in America. I'm a social worker and proud advocate for social equality, and reading this makes my heart hurt for all of America's poor and the rich in our country who live the high life at their expense.