Having an escalating tax rate is not class warfare....

[WCGreen]

It is a simple example of those who benefit the most from our social and political and economic system paying more than those who do not benefit as much.

It's not a fairness issue, it's not a class issue, it's simply a matter of those who benefit the most from the way we are have the most to lose if things go south so they should "invest" more in the care and maintenance of that system.





On edit, changed the mixed tense of the first sentence.

[napoleon_in_rags]

1. Millionaires should pay the same percent of taxes as teachers and plumbers.

That's how Obama said it, and he's right. All the tap dancing I've seen to hide the simplicity of this proposition reveals a sad, sad base backing the Republican party.

[WCGreen]

2. Actually, they should pay a higher percentage....

Again, they benefit from the society being stable, they should pay more for that privilege.

He was referring, I guess, to the lower rates of taxation on dividends and capital gains and not earned income.

[napoleon_in_rags]

3. He was referring to the way it all adds up.

Certain deductions can totally wipe out other debts to government, and if you know how to play the game, certain big actors like corporations can actually come out ahead of the curve, with government owing them money.

[WCGreen]

4. I play that game all the time...

I prepare taxes for a living.

I go out as far as I can to get my clients to the lowest possible tax liability.

But I would surely sacrifice my livelihood if we could get a simple and fairly applied tax code.

[napoleon_in_rags]

6. Sharing a deep thought....

Today I was playing some brain game at work. It showed me a list of 5 5-digit numbers, and asked which one does not belong logically. I came up with a list of criteria, some simple some mathematically complex, and reduced it down to 4 separate ones, each of which ruled out a different number. I clicked on the answer, and found one of my four criteria was the "correct" one, though not the one I guessed. The game claimed you smart if you got it right, but getting it right meant 'thinking like the person who designed the game', nothing more. The individual who designed the puzzle was unable to think deep enough to see that his rule was one of many different valid mathematical rules that could be applied, in fact part of an infinite set. His thought was unbalanced, considering one thing while excluding the other possibilities. It lacked holistic qualities.

I relate this anecdote because it is paradigmatic of our society at large: We are expected to read all the fine print, we are expected to know the totality of the tax code and to make decisions that optimize our benefit, we are expected to know the complete law.(ignorance of the law is not excuse) But all these things take large amounts of time, and the people who make the world go around are busy doing other things, so those who benefit are those who either have nothing but time on their hands, or can hire others (like you) to do it.

Its not the fact that its unjust that really bothers me, its the fact that the injustice is obscured by the shape of our reasoning. We are expected to take "personal responsibility" for knowing these things, when it is virtually a mathematical certainty that nobody doing anything of value other than studying it will ever have the time. We are blind to the relationship between time and knowledge. How many bytes IS the law? How many bytes does the average person read in his or her life?

I admire your willingness to sacrifice your livelihood. I feel we are all edging closer the same feeling, in realizing that there MUST be a better way...

Peace

[WCGreen]

8. There has to be a better way...

[WCGreen]

5. I play that game all the time...

I prepare taxes for a living.

I go out as far as I can to get my clients to the lowest possible tax liability.

But I would surely sacrifice my livelihood if we could get a simple and fairly applied tax code.

[Abq_Sarah]

7. When it comes to income

They do pay more. If their sole source of revenue is from investments, they pay around 15%.

[mvd]

9. Agree! Tax rate should be based on ability to pay

It's not because we hate the rich. It's because they can pay more and still not be affected. It's personal responsibility, which the Teabaggers preach but only want some to practice.

BTW, I liked that segment on Jon Stewart tonight with the "oppressed" millionaire, who was actually played by one of my uncles from my mom's side. He must really be starting to get connections, and I enjoyed his silent performance.