Tax cuts for the wealthy have led to cuts in health care and education, state budget crises, a ballooning federal deficit, and an overall crappy economy.

Are you tired of being trickled on?

There's got to be a better way, right?

Instead of trickle down, why not Rise Up Economics?

Let's make the millionaires and billionaires pay their fair share in taxes and use the money to help average working people make ends meet.

Rise Up Economics would have many benefits:

* Spur the economy. Regular middle-class people will spend the extra money they get, fueling the economy. The wealthy just sink their money into tax-free shelters, and corporations use the money to buy other companies (while cutting jobs) or move their operations overseas.

* Provide economic security. In this troubled economy, we all could use the extra money to help make ends meet.

* Provide economic freedom. It's crazy that we are giving tax breaks to people who already have trust funds. Most people don't have that luxury. We are chained to our jobs. Work is our only source of income and health insurance. Having some money coming in from a source other than our jobs would provide us with a small taste of the economic freedom that the wealthy take for granted.

* Change the way we work. A real strong Rise Up Economics program that provides working people with Social Security-level income would revolutionize work as we know it. We wouldn't be completely reliant on our jobs for income, and would have the option of working less or changing jobs without the ensuing financial problems. It would provide working people with an ace up our sleeves. Having a basic income would allow us to do the work that makes us happy and uses our talents without the financial anxiety.

Trickle Down Economics is the law of the land because corporations and the wealthy are organized and use campaign contributions and lobbying to make the rules of the economy work for them.

The only thing working people have going for us is our numbers. There are more of us then there are of them, and we can out-vote them if we join together. We need to organize and join together to change the rules of the economy to benefit the majority of Americans.

You can start by calling your members of Congress at the Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and urging them to vote against President Bush's new tax cuts. Then email us at riseupeconomics@yahoo.com to become part of the campaign for Rise Up Economics.