Florida Gov. DeSantis to seek end to Disney’s taxing district in special session

Well, no one else in the whole country gets to keep the same tax laws for decades.

I guess not.

The first federal income tax was created in 1861 during the Civil War as a mechanism to finance the war effort. Following the end of the Civil War, the income tax did not have substantial support and was repealed in 1872.

In 1894, Congress passed the Wilson-Gorman tariff which established a tax rate of 2% for annual income over $4,000, but it was overturned by the Supreme Court in 1895. In the early 20th century, the income tax enjoyed renewed support and, in February of 1913, the Sixteenth Amendment to the Constitution was ratified, granting Congress the power to tax personal income.

The original income tax was 1% for the bottom bracket, which was comprised of income up to $20,000, and 7% for the top bracket, which was comprised of income over $500,000.

“I don’t like the state going after a company because they dislike its politics, and I think people should think through the implications of supporting that kind of activity.”

How about if their “politics” is the Iranian government perspective of death to America?

How about if their “politics” says we should hunt down and kill all Christians?

How about if their “politics” says it’s okay to kill babies you don’t want during the first few weeks (or years) after birth?

How about if their “politics” says all children should be taken from their biological parents and given to pedophiles to teach them sex?

We are dealing with people who are depraved and insane. These are not merely “political” differences. These are existential threats.

In this specific case, Disney has privileges no other entity has. They have a market cap of a quarter of a trillion dollars (more than a hundred BILLION bigger than Netflix). They are the world’s largest media company (depending on your definition, as Meta, Apple, Microsoft, and Google are bigger) and are NOT headquartered in Florida. They are a California-based multi-national corp. But they have basically been able to operate autonomously for decades. It’s a reasonable relationship as long as they are not becoming a political activist in the state. Disney is neither representing the interests of the residents of Florida, their shareholders, or the children and parents affected by the Florida Parental Rights in Education bill.

Basically some of their loudmouth employees demanded to use the money, power, and clout of Disney to promote their personal political beliefs without ever consulting the actual owners of the company (the shareholders). Neither the Board nor the employees have the legal right to steal the owners’ interests in this way. It is no different than embezzlement. it is a kind of theft. Further, the board members have a fiduciary obligation to the shareholders by law. Here they are acting in their OWN interests, which is illegal.

And Disney, as arguably the most powerful media company in the world, participated in spreading blatant lies about the legislation. Honestly, this slap on the wrist is far to small. People should be going to prison. Unfortunately, we live in a day where justice is rare.

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