Cohen needs to learn facts

Before patting Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez condescendingly on the head, Adriana Cohen might want to brush up on her own facts. Yes, we currently have a progressive tax code — but with a top rate of only 39 percent, for those earning almost half a million. And as Warren Buffett pointed out in 2013, many of the wealthy pay substantially less than that because of loopholes that favor the rich. By the way, Ms. Cohen, U.S. tax rates were 70 percent or higher on the wealthy during the decades that the economy expanded hugely. And the yellow vest protests in France were largely fueled by the ongoing sense that France’s government favors the wealthy and the elite — they were merely triggered by a fuel tax. In comparison, the Green New Deal favored by Ocasio-Cortez would, like the original New Deal, support the working class. The first New Deal was a response to the crisis of the Great Depression. The Green New Deal responds to the dual crises of climate change and inequality — both of which threaten our society far more than AOC’s “radical” ideas. She has done her homework and offers practical, timetested solutions. What are your ideas, Ms. Cohen? — Susan Donaldson, Cambridge