My anecdotal claim did not use a figure of 99% as yours did. You are correct, any knowledge I have on the subject is anecdotal or assumption. Based on the good I tend to see in folks, I tend to think that putting a number of 99% as not wanting to do good with their money is a bit high.
One of the silly arguments against the estate tax is that income taxes have been paid... The estate tax is a component of the progressive income tax system that we created at the beginning of the last century. Since then, the rich have seen their tax bills cut by over 2/3 while the rest of us have shouldered an expanding burden of taxes. Repealing the estate tax would be yet one more way for the rich to slough their burden off to the middle and lower classes. How exactly is that fair?
No, you are arguing for people who never had to work a single second for that money to be able to keep all of it tax free. In addition, since the estate tax affects only large estates, you are arguing for already rich people to be able to keep tax free money that they never worked a second for.
The estate tax is completely congruent with the principles of this country which is based upon meritocracy, not aristocracy. We don't have dukes, barrons, and lords. We don't have caste systems or debtor prisons. There is a reason Warren Buffet and Bill Gates' father are against the repeal of the estate tax. Billionaire dollar estates that pass estate tax free is not good for this country.
How can you say that? If by "already rich people" you are referring to heirs, I know from personal experience that the "heirs" I know are not "already rich". If by "rich people" you are referring to the estate holder, then how can you say "they never worked a second for"?
Upfront, let me honestly say I only read the first page of this thread. As an individual who forfit more than $450,000 to the estate tax, I am in favor of it generally. One recieves an inheritance through no personal effort. As such, inheritance was the primary means of maintaining a classed society in Europe into the 20th century. And as such it is anathema of everything American society is founded on. Philosophically, everybody is equal in the US. Only through the fruits of your own labor do you seperate yourself. Large estates are an entitlement negates this philosophy. As such, it is more reasonable to tax the hell out of them than to raise the income tax, which is directly the fruits of ones own labor. I really wish that I had the money I forfit to the Government, but I didn't earn it. It was never really mine and so I can't complain.
Its neither fair or unfair to you. You're dead and unless you believe you live on in your possesions its meaningless to you. But you're arguing a total metaphysical point here. Yes you worked hard and gained shrewdly but how is it you keeping any of the money? Again you're dead, you're not paying anymore taxes. You're arguing that somehow you're being taxed in the afterlife but as the saying goes you can't take it with you.
Deja vu. Some people can't accept the principle that the tax is on the value created during the transaction, not the money/assets themselves. http://bbs.clutchfans.net/showthread.php?t=94287&page=1&pp=30&highlight=estate+tax
Those heirs will be inheriting a minimum of 1.5 million dollars if the estate is minimum size and gets taxed at the maximum. They will be rich if they weren't already and they never had to work a single second for that money.
