A Look at Republican Priorities: Comforting the Comfortable

NY Times ^ | 6/23/06 | NYT Editorial board

[Oshkalaboomboom]

The NYT is taking a short break from bashing the US over Iraq to engage in a bit of good old fashioned class warfare.

[mainepatsfan]

I'm sure the fine folks over there will gladly give the money they've saved on the tax break back to the federal government. /s

[Jack Hammer]

The usual NYT crypto-Marxist crap. "Everything is the property of The State. The State will be pleased to allow you to keep that which it allows you to keep, and no more. From each according to his ability, to each according to his need."

[HisKingdomWillAbolishSinDeath]

The NYT's philosophy "It's not your money, your just allowed to keep it until us fascists decide how much is ours."

[coconutt2000]

The "no" votes were a stand for budget sanity and basic fairness.

For an approximate $20 billion in taxes, the estate tax seems rather minor. Eliminate the Estate Tax and get that money moving around in the economy, and eliminate $20 billion from the $29 billion of pork barrel spending, and the books will balance.

[cgbg]

The old man Ben Bradlee said on CSPAN that is was the job of journalists to "comfort the afflicted, and afflict the comfortable".

There is no bias in such a task of course because that is how all "decent" people act, isn't it?

That is the mentality we are dealing with here--the self-appointed guardians of morality and justice.

Puppy training--that's all their Leftist rags are good for...

[evad]

..the Waltons of Wal-Mart

I always knew it was Wal-Mart's fault ;-)

[Coldwater Creek]

We have plenty of money from tariffs alone.

To take half of someones inheritance is thievery.

[evad]

OBTW, didn't they kill it with the 'filter-buster'???

[Ike]

The truly unfair aspect of estate taxes is that the same money gets taxed several times in a twenty or thirty year period. Once should do! My father outlived his mother by only ten years - the gov't got almost half of my grandfather's estate!

[Alberta's Child]

To take half of someones inheritance is thievery.

True, but Federal tax law does allow someone to collect the proceeds of a life insurance policy without paying any taxes on it. This is the way people with financial sense avoid facing an estate tax bill they can't pay.

[kb2614]

The old man Ben Bradlee said on CSPAN that is was the job of journalists to "comfort the afflicted, and afflict the comfortable".

This statement pegs the smug meter.

[FreedomPoster]

The point is, it shouldn't take a bunch of financial sleight of hand, to avoid being taxed at death.

[Alberta's Child]

I would think people are used to this by now in the U.S., where life -- from the standpoint of taxation -- is really nothing more than one long case of "financial sleight of hand."

How many people do you know who make financial decisions on a regular basis based primarily on tax implications (i.e., the size of their mortgage, their 401k contribution, etc.)?

[FreedomPoster]

Oh, huge numbers, no doubt. Heck, my wife is a very competent, and very well compensated, tax accountant, so I'm more aware than most of how bad it is. It doesn't mean we should accept it, though. That's part of what the FairTax is all about.

[Coldwater Creek]

IMHO farmers take the hardest hits with the death tax.

[Ban Draoi Marbh Draoi]

I wonder -- is there a way to find out how much these morons make a year and post their tax returns for public derision?

Let's see how much they pony up for the taxman.

Hypocrites, every one of them.

[ClaireSolt]

An appropriate response would be to seize the inherited NY Times, sell it at auction, and give the money to the poor. Schultberger and his staff of pinkos could be put to work on a chain gang filling potholes .

[pigdog]

Indeed that IS part of what the FairTax is about. It would not only put to flight the nonsense represented by both bills alluded to in the lead-in article, it would help most taxpayers and the economy as well.

The government has no business being able to control citizens lives so greatly via the tax system. That's not necessary to raise the funds required (and it's probable the estate tax is actually a net money loser anyway). It's not really their job either and it is noplace stated that way in the Constitution - in fact quite the opposite appears in several places.

Why should we allow government to continue to have such control and influence??? We shouldn't!!!

It's time for the FairTax!!!

To see why, check the FairTax website.

There's lots of helpful information there on many, many different topics. Check the FAQs and Rebuttals for example.

[pigdog]

There's also much good in-depth information on a great variety of topics at the FairTax Research & Analysis Index.