Two people go shopping

Two people go shopping at the same store and they buy the same things, the only difference is their economic status, one is a rich person and has worked himself out of paying any taxes via tax cuts and tax shelters, and the other person is in poverty and is in the safety net with food stamps.

Now let's see the reactions of the fellow shoppers and the store employees if if they knew of their statuses and the things they receive from the government, be it tax cuts or food stamps:

The rich shopper:
"We better be nice to him and give him discounts or else he'll take his business elsewhere."
"It's like he's injecting new blood into the economy."
"Think of all the jobs he created by buying that one shirt."

The poor shopper:
"Ugh... Do I really have to serve this guy?"
"Does he really need a new shirt? The one he has on looks just fine."
"Is he buying candy... for his kids? *RAGE*"

The root of the problem isn't the rich and it's not the poor, it's the ideological mindset that it's acceptable to make life easier on the rich and they'll work harder in this economy while make life harder on the poor and thinking they'll also work harder in this economy. Sure, a lot of this thinking can be seen in the Tea Party, but it can be seen in other places as well, and liberals and progressives could be the first group that sees this thinking in the Tea Party, in the media, in the government, and more; and step up and oppose it.

Rich people may not be rich forever and poor people may not be poor forever, but as long as this mindset remains, we will all be hurting because of it.