Posted on 06/09/2006 6:30:26 PM PDT by wjersey
So the estate tax cut went down in the Senate, to the cheers of class warriors everywhere. Congratulations to Democratic senators Evan Bayh, Mary Landrieu, Ron Wyden, and Mark Pryor -- all of whom voted against death-tax repeal after voting in favor of it a few years ago. At last, they’ve come to their senses!
Our rich people don’t need another tax break. No, they need higher taxes. And they should be vilified, too. That’s right: America should attack rich people. In fact, we must abolish wealth, which is a tremendous drag on our economy. It’s high time that we made the rich poor.
As for all the xenophobes who want to deport the illegal immigrants who toil in this economy, may I respectfully suggest that their generals (i.e., Lou Dobbs, Pat Buchanan, and Tom Tancredo) consider expanding their dragnet? Let’s deport rich people, too!
These rich people are bad for America. We don’t need their ingenuity, their entrepreneurship, or their capital investment. In the name of egalitarian socialism, the only thing we need from them is more tax dollars. We now tax their incomes as salary, corporate profits, dividends, capital gains, and at death. But we must do better.
Perhaps we can tax them when they contribute to charities, or the building of a new church or synagogue, or a symphony orchestra, or a small-town cultural center; or when they create another college; or when they finance private scholarships for inner-city educations.
But we can’t stop there. Let’s criminalize the entire class of successful American entrepreneurs. Let’s haul out the distributional tables from the Joint Tax Committee and the Congressional Budget Office and target all upper-end earners for special wealth taxes.
Maybe we can even impose jail sentences on rich people. No more interest income at all, just like the radical fundamentalist Muslims do it!
Here’s a thought: Let’s publish the names of all rich people in the newspapers and on the blog sites. Even better, when fat cats venture out in public, let’s swarm them like those animal-rights advocates who throw paint on women wearing mink coats.
Simply, we must strive to make America more like France and Germany -- those great income-leveling, income-redistribution states. But it’s gonna take some work. When I last checked the international tax tables, I found that the U.S. has the third highest estate-tax rate out of 50 countries. We should be ashamed. Only third? We tax estates at a 46 percent marginal rate, but Japan is the best at 70 percent, followed by South Korea at 50 percent. We are pikers. How can we dare let Japan be ahead of us on taxing rich people?
The fact that 24 countries have a zero estate-tax rate, including China, should not concern us. They don’t know what they’re doing. And we do. We don’t want to be competitive in the world economy. We’d prefer to hang out a sign reading: “Capitalists are unwelcome in the U.S.”
This whole idea of keeping more of what you earn and own is just plain stupid. In fact, this whole capitalistic notion is just one of those bizarre global trends that undoubtedly will be reversed as people come to their senses.
The Czech Republic, Estonia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico -- they’re obviously all nuts with their zero tax rates on estates. Did I say Mexico? That’s perfect. Instead of creating thousands of new businesses and millions of new jobs in America, our rich can do this for Mexico. If we deport them, that is. What a great idea!
Forget Sen. Jon Kyl’s fallback position of a 15 percent death-tax rate, after exempting the first $5 million of an estate. That would move us too close to Canada, Australia, and Argentina, which also have zero rates. It would also promote the foolish idea that there is a link between reward and work, and reward and risk.
The whacko ultra-right-wing idea that it must pay after-tax to work and invest is simply insane. Forget what the brilliant Arthur Laffer says. The best way to generate more saving and investment is to tax both more.
This may all sound wrong, but our soak-the-rich liberals are deep thinkers. They have their fingers on the pulse of the hundred-million-strong investor class. They know that the worldwide spread of free-market economics, which was launched by Reagan and Thatcher twenty-five years ago, which has raised global prosperity to record heights, and which has caused the phenomenal growth of the middle class in places like India, China, and Russia, is absolutely nuts.
After all, capital is the enemy of labor! Forget the obvious facts that you can’t create a new job without a business and that you can’t fund a new business without capital. That’s obviously wrong.
Once again, capital is the enemy. Rich people are evil. We have to put an end to all this capitalist, supply-side nonsense.
By the way, when is Karl Marx’s birthday? I have to stop writing now, so I can go look it up. Next May? Well, at least that will give me time to prepare a triumphant celebration for the greatest soak-the-rich advocate of all time.
"Only American Citizens get the deduction. That is 2 million this year."
Interesting. That would discourage people from bringing and creating wealth in this country.
Actually it encourages people to become citizens....we have friends who are Canadian....who after 20+ years of living here...raising there kids here....became citizens when they found out about the tax implications.
You would be surprised about what some people assume and don't know.
Many come from places like Korea, buy properties and make large estates.
They pass without becoming citizens and their estate gets taxed away at near some level like 45%.
YIKES!
The same US citizens might avoid all taxes unless their estates are very very loaded.
My understanding is that the top 5% of the wealthiest class control 90% of the wealth. There's something really loop-sided about that. So I have no pity for the rich, or those "conservatives" that have lost there way....
It's more like the top 5% pays 90% of the taxes.
In addition, neither Canada or USA allows today their citizens to drop their citizen ship if they go to the other country.
They only allow duel citizenship between those two nations because so many that changed have wanted to change back.
I pay far more than my "fair share".
I've paid my way, my families way and all my immediate relatives way and then some.
The government has gotten enough from me.
I really resent the implication you're making.
Quite a few of the wealthiest people are in favor of inheritance taxes--many, because they have already prevented their kids from having to pay such taxes.
Bill Gates is in favor of inheritance taxes
http://www.pbs.org/now/transcript/transcript_inheritance.html
Not only that, the "rich people" who happen to die early, who are being hit by big taxes aren't really rich. Many in the middle class are being hit with the death tax (just like the AMT - I have to figure out my taxes two ways). Modest homes are worth $500K-$1000K in many places. Combine that with a reasonable retirement nest-egg ($1 to $1.5 million, it is prudent to have sufficient savings to be able to sustain your lifestyle with a 4% to 5% annual withdrawal, = $40K-$75K from the nest-egg), you're there.
People have been inflated into being rich! Just like the inflation after the big bang, middle class drones are being redefined as the "super rich" who are subject to excessive taxation, and common derision.
I'm there (3-5 years from retirement), many of my (most assuredly, middle class) colleges are there - and I'm certainly not rich. Modest 2000 sq. ft. home, 6 year old car, no yacht (not even a boat), no second vacation home, no housekeeper, pinch pennies to invest, do my own laundry, worry about gas prices, shop at Wal-Mart. What was it, 10 years ago that the "Millionaire Next Door" was published? Since then 20% (pure speculation - but including me) more of the population has been "inflated" into this class.
My state takes a big bite (which by the way, is no longer a deduction from the federal take - it used to be), and the feds will take a big bite, certainly if the old tax rates come back (2012 is is? - $1M exemption, 55% of the remainder - as well as 5-15% state tax, on the gross). My premature death (and many other middle class worker bees) will be a windfall for the tax men (soak the rich, indeed)!
It's time for the FaairTax!!
Didn't your parents "do anything for you"???
Not all inherited wealth is multi-millions of dollars. When my Dad died, his wealth including his own home, equaled about 1.1 million. We had to sell his home, which when dead you do not get the $250,000 capital gains exemption any more, sell his car, all his stocks and pay over 50% on the 100,000. Remember it is 46% fed, another 9+ percent state!! So my brothers and I, at 50 years old inherited about $300,000 each. We all bought real estate, and businesses with that money. Then hired people to help us with our investments and that $300,000 is worth much more, to then pass onto our children. In most cases when "children" inherit money they are 50 or more years old and don't automatically turn into slackers and spend it all blindly.
The main point here is my Dad already paid tax on all the money he left to us. And those that say we win life's lottery, believe me I would rather have my Dad and Mom than their money.
It's time for the FairTax!!!
I was responding to a poster who pointed out that Ludlow was an Open Borders supporter. Hope it doesn't come as too big a shock for you.
The goal of all satire and irony is to make a point from a different direction. Sadly, you don't understand that the point is still the same. Why is that?
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