Watch Matt Welch React Live to the State of the Union Tonight on Stossel!

I'll be on Fox Business Network just moments after POTUS's SOTU, yakking with the great John Stossel (and Megan McArdle, and UPDATE: Sen. Rand Paul, and Gary Johnson, and David Boaz, and more!) about whatever non-great words tumble out of President Barack Obama's mouth tonight.

Make sure to come by these part around 9 p.m. ET for open-threading and Reason staff live-Tweeting. Our handy drinking game is here. My cobbling-together of the past 50 SOTUs into an almost-coherent Barack Obama speech is here.

Comments

[killazontherun]

Fist!

[Fire Tiger]

Hmmm "Fist"? Your on the wrong site, feminist Fisting porn is here.

[President Obama]

There are those who scare peace-loving people with phantoms of lost liberty . . . wait, I've heard this somewhere before?

[Paul]

I really consider it more the Zombie Apocalypse of lost liberty.

But that's just me.

[.]

Don't watch the SOTFU...watch this girl instead:

Ex Obama drone begs you to google Ron Paul!!!

[killazontherun]

A Hustler rating system five cocks up. OMG she's beautiful.

[Tony]

I'd rather watch Jay Carney! He's dreamy!

[killazontherun]

I get that. It's the eyes. Eagle like and so noble.

[.]

No doubt, and exhibiting a nicely-supple set of lobes.

(I was speaking of her brain, you degenerate)

[Fire Tiger]

SWINGGGGGG!!!!!!

[killazontherun]

And an intelligent comment in the comment section of youtube, Taxes can't fix a police state, just make it stronger.

freaky Tuesday!

[AlmightyJB]

Clearly the best choice'

[drunker]

You better be visibly drunk while on tv or this whole game drinking is just bs to get more page views!

[killazontherun]

Matt, you forgot to include in the drinking game the obligatory quote from Reagan used to make current ones seem unReasonable in comparison.

[fish]

Finally! Nancy Pelosi and I agree on something!

http://www.realclearpolitics.c.....appen.html

[DK]

Pelosi [on why Gingrich will not be President]: "There is something I know. The Republicans, if they choose to nominate him that's their prerogative. I don't even think that's going to happen."

Will the MSM constantly harp on Pelosi to find out what she knows? Or, actually do some journalism and find out from other sources? Probably not, they'd rather ask Paul if he's running 3rd party.

[0x90]

It's hilarious how she is completely unable to deal with the hypothetical.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Stossel on Tuesday? Give me a break!

[Lucy Steigerwald]

I see what you did there.

[Max]

At least half of Ron Paul's enthusiastic base shows up in giddy anticipation that one of his fake eyebrow is going to fall off. Obama can't compete with that.

[JW]

I'll be on Fox Business Network just moments after POTUS's SOTU, yakking with the great John Stossel (and Megan McArdle...

Funny how my brain automatically put the Megan and Fox together in the correct order.

[Episiarch]

Watching Transformers 2 will do that to you. Along with a whole host of other brain damage.

[Fire Tiger]

Well, Jonah Hex just left me thinking, "We get it, you sexy, just release your celebrity sex tape already, because otherwise the only way you are going to get another $12 out of me is $1 at a time and there better be a whole lot of grinding going on."

[Hazel Meade]

Just want to put in my 2 cents early.

The carried interest tax break ought to end. Libertarians should not be defending it.

All income should be taxed at the same rate.

[Paul]

All income should be taxed at the same rate.

Well, except income shouldn't be taxed. But yes, barring real tax reform, income should be taxed at a flat rate.

[John Thacker]

Doesn't contradict things. All income should be taxed at the same rate of 0.

Then, as a compromise, we can have a progressive consumption tax.

[drunkerer]

No. Then we call it a day and turn the lights off in DC. Last one out has cooties.

[Hazel Meade]

It would be great if we could have zero taxation. However, a core principle of libertarianism is (or should be) that all laws are simple minimal and uniform.

Just because we've gone past "minimal" is no reason to throw "uniform" out the window.

If we're going to have income taxes, it is grotesque for people who make a living off of investments to be paying less in taxes than those who earn wages. Especially in that case of fund managers who get bonuses for managing other people's investments. There's no earthly reason why the bonus pay that a fund manager gets should be taxed at the rate that a venture capitalist who risks his own money pays.

Even IF we tax investments at a lower rate, we should be treating this as wage income, not capital gains.

[0x90]

Would you imply that a tax rate of zero must result in tax receipts falling to zero? What about a rate of X, strongly suggested, but not physically enforced? Churches make out pretty well.

Under such a regime, I argue that effective tax rates would assume a progressive curve.

[TomD]

Your clarity is refreshing, as always.

[Hazel Meade]

🙂 well, I guess I was not too clear, but what I mean to say : IF we are going to have income tax, we should have a flat tax, but even IF you buy the argument that investment income should be taxed at a lower rate, it doesn't make sense to apply that to the bonus pay that fund managers get.

Maybe taxing capital gains more would discourage investment. Possibly. But taxes on wage earnings discourages work. I see a wash. Why is it worse to discourage investment than to discourage work?

[shrike]

Very courageous and realistic. Capital losses are also subtracted from income up to a point. Taxes incent the worst behavior.

[0x90]

Especially in rough economic times, it can be difficult to distinguish between an enterprise that is losing money, and one that exists primarily for the purpose of losing money.

[John Thacker]

All income should be taxed at the same rate.

Does that include imputed income from the value that a stay-at-home parent brings to the family?

[Hazel Meade]

No. Why should it?

[Fire Tiger]

Sure, imputed income = $0.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Cavuto won't shut up. The Stoss is in bed already and Welch is trapped under his tipped-over tweet machine anyway.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Alan Simpson just said, "Where's the beef."

[Fist of Etiquette]

Stossel teaser!

[Fist of Etiquette]

Snake oil must be a better product.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Watch out, Rand, I see the TSA sneaking up to grab your junk!

[Fist of Etiquette]

Mostly the individualists came to America, but not exclusively.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Boaz Constrictor in the house.

[Fist of Etiquette]

President Obama does not understand his role in the economy.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Urbanites apparently love their bumper stickers as much trailer park USA.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Stick it to that fat cat Stossel, Matt!

[Fist of Etiquette]

Stossel called Welch on ducking the equality question. Boom.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Ha, slowing the growth of spending is the most you can praise.

[Fist of Etiquette]

HOLY EFFING ESS! Palin on Stossel Thursday. DURING THE DEBATE.

[Fist of Etiquette]

I wish McCardle had said, "The Chinaman is not the issue here."

[Fist of Etiquette]

Awww, I was hoping it was going to be that guy with the boot on his head.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Gary Johnson is projecting.

[Fist of Etiquette]

So Gary Johnson decked them instead.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Looks like a Koch brothers a capella group sitting there.

[Matt Welch]

Fist, bro, I want to donate to your 501(c)(4)! Seriously, your dedication is very humbling.

[Fist of Etiquette]

You know who else didn't know when to quit?

Seriously back at you, you Reasoners always do a good job representing on the TeeVee. (Although I think after that performance Megan McArdle is probably too good for Suderman.)

[Fist of Etiquette]

Fire teachers who don't contribute... UNION DUES.

[Fist of Etiquette]

"Speaking of next presidents, Mitt Romney..."

-Matt Welch admitting that Romney will be the next president.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Who's the fairest in the land? OBAMA!

[Fist of Etiquette]

19% of GDP in taxes or in spending?

[Fist of Etiquette]

This SOTU is too partisan!

[Fist of Etiquette]

Obama would have had to tear up his teleprompter.

[Fist of Etiquette]

This address is a real bummer.

[Fist of Etiquette]

I think that stack of regulations is Stossel's running mate.

[Fist of Etiquette]

This should count as my Stossel for the week.

[Fire Tiger]

This should count as your maximum post count for the week.

[Fist of Etiquette]

A night of live blogging gone awry.

[Capitalisms]

Even Tony would think this is too much fisting.