To the Point

Tax Cuts and Class Warfare

The centerpiece of President Bush-s economic stimulus package is ending the tax on corporate dividends. As the President takes heat for his plan, each side is accusing the other of -class warfare.- Yet, while Republicans concede that repealing the tax will benefit the rich more than anyone else, Democrats may have a hard time generating resentment from the poor and the middle class. Is that because most Americans buy the argument that tax cuts will trickle down and stimulate the economy, or because they hope that, one day, they-ll be rich too? Is it good politics to bash rich people in a country where everybody wants to be one? We hear more about hubris, high hopes and economic history with experts from New York Times and Barron-s, former Republican political strategist Kevin Phillips, The Nation-s Marc Cooper, and an economic advisor to then-President Ronald Reagan. Newsmaker: Blix Suggests Iraq Do More UN Chief Weapons Inspector Hans Blix, today, advised Saddam Hussein that the only way to avoid war is to cooperate more fully with weapons inspectors. In Brussels, on his way to Baghdad, Blix said he-ll have a warning for the Iraqi leader. Judy Dempsey, diplomatic correspondent for Financial Times, says Blix has urged the Iraqi dictator to be more proactive. Reporter-s Notebook: Has Pornography Industry Solved Internet Piracy? The $3 billion industry is often ignored by the news media, perhaps in the hope that it might go away. Yet, while Hollywood and the music industry struggle to battle Internet piracy, pornography consistently has made money on the Web and has even devised a way to solve Internet piracy. Freelance reporter Steve Friess, who recently wrote on this subject for Newsweek, says the industry-s formula combines creativity and technology.