Tuesday, October 19, 2004

Call Off Your Old, Tired Class Warfare Rhetoric

This article details how federal taxes are really distributed and what the average person thinks is a fair rate for anyone to pay, including the rich. Note that the rates given in the article are for federal tax alone, and are the aggregate rate for an entire year's income. When you add in state, FICA, and medicare taxes and consider marginal income (i.e. the last dollar earned for the year), it is possible to hit a marginal rate in excess of 51%. How hard would you work for that last dollar if the government gets most of it? If you were the junior partner in your own life? If you were effectively a slave? Do you think this might have a negative effect on incentive, expansion of small businesses and wealth creation? On the overall prosperity of a society? Then as Arnold would say, "You ahh a Republican!"

It is my understanding that part of the reason for the huge famines in Russia in the 1920's was not simply socialistic inefficiency, but that the small farmers who were being "collectivized" and forced onto communes, with all of their produce taken by the state, simply elected to say a big "F--- you!" to the government. They decided they'd rather starve as free men, than be slaves to Lenin. They actually burned their crops and buried and burned their farm equipment. Millions died of famine, and millions were executed for lack of cooperation. For some reason, the 100% tax rate didn't do anyone much good.

The endless class-warfare drumbeat of the Democrats is a loser for them. People want to be well off, and they don't want to be screwed if they achieve success!

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