THE VIDEO - Gasp!

[Melki]

I'm sure I don't even have to tell you the news today. Secret video, Mitt manages to offend 47% of the population, etc.

Here's what he said - “There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right, there are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it. That that's an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what ... These are people who pay no income tax.”

Liberal websites are proclaiming the election OVER! Personally, I don't think this is going to change the mind of anyone who was already planning to vote for Romney.

What do you think?

[Robert]

Coming from someone who has their taxes reduced to the lowest legal rates by accountants and gimmicks it is not going to change anything.

It's just a meaningless number in a meaningless speech left over from the republican primaries.

I bet a lot of people don't know what the number even stands for and don't care. (I had to look it up, my first guess was people receiving entitlements which was completely wrong, but that is what they want you to think, too bad about the internet being able to clear up foggy facts).

The 47 percent figure is suppose to be percentage of Americans not paying income tax. This is definitely a case where using percentages is done for only one reason, the real facts are actually boring.

Of the 47 percent
28 percent pay payroll tax (rate is around 15%)
10 percent are elderly (already paid their taxes)
7 percent are not elderly and make less than 20,000
1 percent is other

The unemployed are mixed in with the elderly, less than 20,000 and the unknown 1 percent.

And somewhere in there are the really rich who manage to pay way less than they actually could.

And some of the 47 percent are republicans voting for Romney.

By now I personally expected to see a lot more independently produced videos designed to change my mind, but the tv I watch is more geared towards selling you soap, cars, and other useful products.

[Ricardo]

I think that this has been a terrible week for Ronmey.The worse in all the campaign. At this very moment it seems very difficult for him to overcome President Obama. He is not connecting with the people. Nevertheless, it is too soon to conclude that he has lost this race. If the economy goes down abrutly, the actual trend could change.

[Melki]

It still continues to amaze me that THEY have bilked SO MANY people into believing that more tax breaks for millionaires will somehow IMPROVE the economy.

[Ricardo]

That`s crazyness. It is incredible that some people believe that vodoo economics. For that kind of policy inequality in America has grown more than ever since the great depression.

Then on the one hand Mitt Romney critizes the 47% of the american for not paying income tax; but on the other hand he don´t has released his tax returns. What`s going on with this guy.

[Robert]

The irony of it is that amongst that 47 percent are republicans voting for him.

Someday people will understand the reality of everything being recorded. Then we will probably learn to naturally double speak so later on we can always plausibly backtrack out of whatever it is someone thought we were saying. Might even need to learn triple speak for those special occasions.

[Melki]

I'm starting to doubt that most people WILL ever "understand." It seems that many are either too bored by politics or too busy to pay much attention, and they wind up voting for the same party their parents did - even if that party no longer represents their best interests. And like my mother-in-law - they hear what they want to hear, and conveniently forget the rest.

A short term memory seems to be the requirement for the Republican party member these days. Junior Bush's reign of idiocy apparently never happened. And Ronald Reagan's 8 years in the White House which were spent proving beyond a shadow of a doubt that trickle-down economics DOESN'T work? Why, that was the Golden Age. He was the GREATEST President EVER, and the Republicans have been searching since then for "another" Reagan.

I don't think(fingers crossed, knock on wood) they'll win THIS go-round, but the next guy will learn from Mitt's mistakes and keep his comments about the "lowly riff-raff" to himself until after he gets elected, and then look out - it'll be "Morning in America" all over again.

[Lisa]

I think it would be a major mistake to become too overconfident. I'm going back to the Democratic Party of Evanston tonight to make more phone calls.

[Naomi V]

i'm not sure this ridiculous statement by Willard will make a big difference. among those 47% are the teabaggers who held up signs saying "keep your government hands off my social security." there are a LOT of people in that 47% who don't see themselves as belonging to that group.

[Naomi V]

Lisa wrote: "I think it would be a major mistake to become too overconfident. I'm going back to the Democratic Party of Evanston tonight to make more phone calls."

good for you!