One of the features of Convertibility's graph that immediately caught my eye was how much flatter this histogram must now be compared to the same histogram plotted for mid 1950's data. There doesn't seem to be any question that our income tax has become less progressive with time. With concentration of wealth goes concentration of political power. Good up to a point if you are wealthy and are happy to live in a less egalitarian country. Bad if you prefer greater opportunity for self-determination, democracy and residing in a more egalitarian country. Of interest might be total taxes net of total government payments received. For the poor this might be possible to accurately compute, but would it be possible to accurately compute the effect of billions in direct and indirect government subsidy of corporate incomes on net of unearned income of the wealthy? I doubt it. Perhaps another approach is more likely to yield meaningful results. For example, the within population, change over time in the distribution of living standards, based on some broadly accepted international standard, might be enlightening.
where do you come up with this stupid stuff? It's none of the govts concern about "concentration of wealth".
All top 10% pay way too much, however ultra wealthy, who are a tiny fraction of top 1% are not paying their fare share. There is the whole industry that uses elaborate schemes to help them paying a much smaller % than the rest of us. Yet, they get to enjoy all the same benefits as we all, plus a lot more of course. It is a simple as that.
Obviously as rich democraps demonstrate when your wealth reaches somewhere around 100 million or so or greater ,taxes no longer meaningfully impact your life. I'm not going to sit here and give any credence to some piece of shit liberal billionaire (who 1 way or another exempts himself) tell me I need to pay higher marginal tax rates. They deserve to have their spleens pulled out via their assholes.
it could be much more simple than that. Whatever we tax, income, property, consumption, etc.. everyone should pay the same %. No loopholes, no deductions, just a flat rate. That is FAIR, it's the same whether you make 10k or 10B, you are contributing your share. As for those guys at the top, who are for the most part hated out of sheer envy, I say congrats. (Except to those in the "do as I say, not as I do" crowd, like Buffet. Fuck them.) <iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/XnUUuPUmq6w" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
No large modern society practices this, for a very basic economic reason (already mentioned): marginal utility.
(Except to those in the "do as I say, not as I do" crowd, like Buffet. Fuck them.) You forgot Romney :eek: !