Ever run into some fool who's complaining that the rich have the largest share of the tax burden?

[MrScorpio]

There's an easy way to explain to this person why the rich SHOULD have the largest share… (And SHOULD PAY MORE).

Let's say you have two people in the room; Dudes A and B.

Dude A is just a regular Joe and all he earns is 10 Dollars a year, (Please bear with me), Dude B is a top 1% rich guy and he earns 10 MILLION dollars a year.

At the standard tax rate of 35%, Dude A pays his share of $3.50 and Dude B (If he hasn't availed himself of all the exigent loops) pays three and a half MILLION dollars.

It's easy to see why the rich should make up such a "large" part of the tax pie. It's 65.3% in this chart http://www.nationmaster.com/red/country/us-united-states/tax-taxation&all=1

That's quite a lot… Until you realize how much wealth the top 30% actually have… As of 2007 the top 19% alone held NINETY THREE PERCENT of the nation's wealth! http://sociology.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/power/wealth.html



If the rich have 93% of the wealth and only pay 65% of the taxes, it's easy to see how much the little guy is getting hosed. Hell, the rich can even cover everyone else at the bottom 80% of earners and still have plenty left over for yachts, extra mansions and shit.

But that wouldn't be fair, now would it? Of course, not. But, would be? Well, seeing how those rich fuckers have so much money and the rest of us don't, let's say the fucking rich pony up more cash to just cover the deficits and the wars that they love, enough to make Medicare and Social Security safe and and sound and some reinvestment in infrastructure… And I'm being awfully lenient here.

The more money they invest in America with definitely result in more jobs for the rest of us, the opportunity for higher wages and the increased ability for that percentage to invest as well, while seeing their standard of living raise quite a bit.

The more productive America becomes the more EVERYONE benefits…. Even the rich.

They say that you've got to spend money to make money… Our rich friends should know this most of all.

[Scuba]

1. This is a simple either/or problem...

[aquart]

3. Eat them? Oh, I wouldn't.

But cat food is getting damned expensive.

[Zoeisright]

2. Absolutely brilliant.

[MichiganVote]

4. K&R

[Old and In the Way]

5. Very good analysis. Seems we should expect that they pay at least their fair share.

Seems to me that a robust economy with the bottom 80% spending is a good thing for the those that own the businesses that service us. Would you rather pay 50% taxes on an income of $10MM or 20% on an income %5MM?

[jwirr]

11. No one making over $50,000 a year should ever not pay zero taxes.

It is the least we can do for our country. JFK's speech comes to mind.

[mistertrickster]

6. Actually, it's worse than you suggest, for the rich pay comparatively little

in ordinary income tax.

They make a majority of their income from "capital gains" (interest on investments like stocks and bonds) which is taxed at only 15 percent.

It's why Warren Buffett pays a smaller share of his income in taxes than his sec'ry does.

[Hannah Bell]

7. kr

[Norrin Radd]

8. I've met that fool far too often.

I chalk it up to mass Stockholm Syndrome.

[BanzaiBonnie]

9. I'm so glad you're here at DU

Now, let's add to the education of those who don't understand the set up.



My post this morning on banking and why banks creating money is a scam:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x671840

[MikeE]

10. No, but In the fall here in DC when they had a teabagger rally

Some guy in the lockerroom of my gym was saying that the Wall Street execs need to get paid so much because it is so stressful to try to get around all those regulations that it takes years off their life. I shut him down to applause in the locker room by saying, just stop trying to get around the law and follow it, then you won't need so much money. Problem solved.