I'll bet he moved on to forums where his ideas were more warmly accepted.
On the issues of taxes ... tax me more!
Sure, tax the rich more too.
But every American should be chipping in to solve the issues that we're facing.
We're in the lifeboat, and the water's rising. Everybody pick up a pail and start bailing.
I never thought I'd see the day, but I agree with you. Everyone has to see a tax increase in order to solve the budget problems.
The non-tax accountant part of me (the tax accountant part of me wants the tax code as complicated as humanly possible) would love it if the corporate tax code was simplified and the tax rates reduced so that corporations actually paid taxes in line with other nations - we'd still probably see more revenue even with the decreased rates because the base would be broadened and corporations would actually pay. We should probably broaden the tax base for individuals by eliminating deductions and then eliminate the Bush tax cuts for everyone (which will increase tax rates across the board, more so at the upper two brackets). I'm not opposed to adding a VAT with a low rate either.
I'd like to see plenty of spending cuts too - stop the three wasteful and pointless wars we are fighting would be a great start, then cut defense spending. Like it or not, I think we need to acknowledge that social security needs changes - a decrease in benefits and removing the limit on payroll taxes for social security would be a good start.
But then again, I'm a moderate (though I am generally fiscally libertarian) and I understand the urgency with which we need to eliminate our deficit and decrease our national debt. I don't have much hope for any of this happening, since neither side can seem to acknowledge that we need a combo of what they both propose.
One thing I don't hear in the raising taxes discussion is what we should do with capital gains. That's the reason billionaires pay a paltry 15%. Almost all of their income comes from the selling of assets rather than a salary. Their money works for them, rather than the rest of us who have to work for our money. And for that, we reward them with a super low tax rate. :rolleyes:
It's time to raise the capital gains rate and make it progressively tied to income taxes.
I tend to agree - I have no problem giving someone who actually makes their money via salary or wages a capital gains break (it encourages investing and most of the time those gains will be from investments for retirement), but it is kind of silly that someone who derives most of their income from capital gains gets to pay at the same low rate. Possibly it could be linked to amount of income and percentage of gross income that comes from capital gains - for instance, if you are in the top income bracket and more than 50% of your gross income is from capital gains, you must include all income at the standard ordinary income rates. Of course it would have to be refined (too easy to get around right now), but it would insure that higher income individuals that make most of their money via capital gains pay appropriate taxes, while keeping most retirees and lower/middle/upper middle income people from being hit with ordinary income rates on capital gains when the a lower rate is more appropriate.
chicago bulls 2011 team
On the issues of taxes ... tax me more!
Sure, tax the rich more too.
But every American should be chipping in to solve the issues that we're facing.
We're in the lifeboat, and the water's rising. Everybody pick up a pail and start bailing.
I never thought I'd see the day, but I agree with you. Everyone has to see a tax increase in order to solve the budget problems.
The non-tax accountant part of me (the tax accountant part of me wants the tax code as complicated as humanly possible) would love it if the corporate tax code was simplified and the tax rates reduced so that corporations actually paid taxes in line with other nations - we'd still probably see more revenue even with the decreased rates because the base would be broadened and corporations would actually pay. We should probably broaden the tax base for individuals by eliminating deductions and then eliminate the Bush tax cuts for everyone (which will increase tax rates across the board, more so at the upper two brackets). I'm not opposed to adding a VAT with a low rate either.
I'd like to see plenty of spending cuts too - stop the three wasteful and pointless wars we are fighting would be a great start, then cut defense spending. Like it or not, I think we need to acknowledge that social security needs changes - a decrease in benefits and removing the limit on payroll taxes for social security would be a good start.
But then again, I'm a moderate (though I am generally fiscally libertarian) and I understand the urgency with which we need to eliminate our deficit and decrease our national debt. I don't have much hope for any of this happening, since neither side can seem to acknowledge that we need a combo of what they both propose.
One thing I don't hear in the raising taxes discussion is what we should do with capital gains. That's the reason billionaires pay a paltry 15%. Almost all of their income comes from the selling of assets rather than a salary. Their money works for them, rather than the rest of us who have to work for our money. And for that, we reward them with a super low tax rate. :rolleyes:
It's time to raise the capital gains rate and make it progressively tied to income taxes.
I tend to agree - I have no problem giving someone who actually makes their money via salary or wages a capital gains break (it encourages investing and most of the time those gains will be from investments for retirement), but it is kind of silly that someone who derives most of their income from capital gains gets to pay at the same low rate. Possibly it could be linked to amount of income and percentage of gross income that comes from capital gains - for instance, if you are in the top income bracket and more than 50% of your gross income is from capital gains, you must include all income at the standard ordinary income rates. Of course it would have to be refined (too easy to get around right now), but it would insure that higher income individuals that make most of their money via capital gains pay appropriate taxes, while keeping most retirees and lower/middle/upper middle income people from being hit with ordinary income rates on capital gains when the a lower rate is more appropriate.
http://images.macrumors.com/im/macrumorsthreadlogo.gif (http://www.macrumors.com/2011/05/04/apple-targeting-mac-app-store-as-preferred-mac-os-x-lion-distribution-mechanism/)
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chicago bulls 2011 team photo.
chicago bulls 2011 team photo.
chicago bulls 2011 team.
chicago bulls 2011 team photo.
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