The Perfect Society: A Land without Wealth?

The American Thinker ^ | June 29, 2010 | Anthony W. Hager

[Scanian]

Utopia! It's the holy grail of egalitarian busybodies far and wide. If only outcomes were equal, as defined by the egalitarians themselves, the world would become a place of balanced chi and seamless harmony. These societal engineers have long believed in their unique intellects and superlative abilities, which qualify them to distribute wealth and contentment to a longing world. Sadly, there's no shortage of these do-gooders.

A New York State Assemblyman envisions an increased millionaire tax. If passed, high income earners -- who already bear a disproportionate share of New York's tax burden -- will pitch in an additional 11 percent. The broken record known as Hillary Clinton still laments how "the rich" don't pay their "fair share" of taxes. Oregon, too, has joined the chorus.

Earlier this year, Oregon voters passed Measures 66 and 67, raising taxes on individuals and businesses that wealth redistributors, in their profundity, have deemed excessive winners in life's lottery. Typical class envy tactics preceded that electoral outcome. Proponents argued that education, public safety, and health would suffer if the initiatives failed. The poor, naturally, would take it on the chin.

The entire premise of a perceived "fair share" is ambiguous at best.

[Leftism is Mentally Deranged]

Communism means that no individual owns anything and all the means of production are in the hands of the collectivity. So you and I own nothing. We don’t own the coffee cup that we are drinking from. We don’t the pot to pee in. Nothing. We have no right to earn money from the sweat of our brow.

Sounds exactly like the goals of the current administration.

[red tie]

More and more people are unfortunately. If people don't have relatives to count on it could get very ugly over the next couple of years as people's resources deplete.

[driftless2]

If the great bulk of Dem voters were subjected to a lie-detector test, it would show that a great percentage of them vote Dem because they’re jealous of what others have. They think the rich (i.e. anyone with more than they have) are all Republicans, and it’s just not fair. At least that’s what I gather from listening to long-time Dem friends. I mention the tax discrepancy, the “rich” pay a much higher share of the federal tax burden, and they refuse to believe it. That’s what most Dems are, people who think life has been unfair to them. And they want to get even.