War on the rich?

by phil on Monday Mar 9, 2009 10:12 PM
better than middle

Note the huge cuts before each recession.

Top Tax Rate graph via Matt Haughey's del.icio.us.

Did a quick Googling and found the Yin to this Yang (or is it Yang to its Yin?):

By 2005, the most recent year data are available, our top 1 percent of filers were paying nearly 40 percent of the federal income tax bill, while those in the 2nd to 5th percentile paid another 20 percent. Every other group saw its share of the tax bill decline, sometimes substantially. Those taxpayers in the 26th to 50th percentile (that is, with an adjusted gross income roughly between $31,000 and $62,000) paid 11 percent of all federal income taxes, down from 20 percent back in 1980, while those in the 11th to 25th percentiles (earning between $62,000 and $104,000 today), paid 16 percent of the federal tax bill, down from 24 percent in 1980.

(via RealClearMarket's The Rich and their Taxes)

Draw your own conclusion.

Well, I'll throw my hat in the ring.

A guess a couple of principles I have are:

• Money doesn't measure actual value
• Market inefficiencies outweigh efficiencies, and therefore isn't a meritocracy
• Balance of Power (i.e. nothing should be too powerful, neither federal gov't, state gov't, businesses, nor the invisible hand)
• Capital is required to create businesses and jobs
• The more incentives for people to make more money, the better for everybody

Despite these principles being in conflict, I don't think the right response is to be "well, who knows?" There is a right answer.