So because many aspects discourage savings, we should just go on discouraging savings then, eh? Makes perfect sense.
and if they did, they'd be very well off, especially here. i take home a lot less than that, about a two-thirds less. i am able to afford my house, car, insurance, bills, and am able to put money away towards paying off any debt. i'm really starting to think that the people who have a hard time managing their money are those who make a lot of it. if i was taking home 3x what i am now, i would have no personal debt at all and would be able to save enough to make my future family very comfortable.
okay....actually, I did word that incorrectly. My apologies. I can't speak for every single store manager of every single Discount Tire store. So let me rephrase that.......... The manager of the Discount Tire store in The Woodlands makes $120k annually. You can bet on it. and I'm not talking about Assistant or Senior Assitant Managers, who you see quite a bit. I'm talking about the Store Manager.....who is quite often in the back, in his office. Discount Tire loves to promote from within......and they love to take care of the employees that take care of them, Most store managers have been with Discount for 10 years or more. $120k is not much to pay to a manager of a store that generates millions of dollars annually.
they wouldn't be poor. but they wouldn't be rich either. they certainly wouldn't "deserve" to be taxed more because they make that salary by ripping off poor people. Face it, America's way of taxing people is r****ded. Receiving a salary is not how rich people make their money anyway. Rich people are rich because they make their money by owning business which make them money while they go do something else. convicinng the public that its a good thing to raise taxes on the professional class who just live off their salary by calling them "rich" is one of the biggest con jobs actual rich people have ever pulled off on the American public.
because I use the same roads, the same bridges, tunnels, hospitals, libraries, schools, parks, etc as everyone else, I have the same rerpresenitives and elected officials as you do. Those "coniditions" are ideal for ANYONE to make money......yet, I have to pay more, because I take advantage of the opportunities this country gives me? let me ask you this......if we both went to Denny's and ordered a grand slam, you have to pay $12.99 and I only have to pay $4.99 for the same plate...... do your eggs taste better?
You get to deduct property tax and sales tax. Most people take the formula for the sales tax deduction, but you could save every receipt and deduct exactly what you pay. (I agree with your point, but your examples fail.)
Tax income? Well all taxes tax "income." A sales tax taxes income. What matters is how you define income but more importantly how the tax is levied. many countries don't have progressive income tax systems if that is what you mean. Russia, off the top of my head has a flat tax ironically (or did last itme I checked). America didn't have a progressive income tax system 100 years ago for that matter. Anything is possible. My point is that its r****ded to talk about "fairness" or "need" in a system so blatantly geared to help the upper class who understand how wealth is accumulated. The tax code is replete with exceptions, deductions, etc. that nobody can understand without a tax lawyer or fancy accountant. If you want to tax people making 120 G's that's all well and good, but don't call them rich while you do it.
I mean, the professional who loses 40 % of his net worth every year because he only has a salary, and basically lives paycheck to paycheck with a relatively small savings/investments --most people-- is burdened much more by taxes than the rich guy who is taxed at a slightly higher rate, but whose wealth is all in property, investments, and businesses that grow in value annually, and gets huge loans from the banks to start new ones.
that's the real issue. If the govt was more responsible with spending we wouldn't have to worry about taxing anyone more. people are bickering over what rish is and how much one should make ,(btw, 120K a year is not rich). It's still amazing that people vilify those who are successful for making a good living but don't seem to be outraged by the ridiculous spending that has taken place over the last few months. And more spending is on they way
first of all as far as russia goes, you conveniently leave out the UST which taxes something like 26% of the first couple hundred thousand rubles and then drops significantly. secondly most professionals do not pay 40% of their income to income taxes. the top 1% of households, with a minimum AGI of 330k paid only 31% of their income to federal taxes. this includes SS, excise, corporate. and also keep in mind this 1%'s average pretax income is actually 1.7 mil. so the 31% is skewed towards the super-rich who may pay a bit more. cbo numbers from 06
Isn't that why this thread started out with a proposal for a transaction tax? Also we are talking about an income tax not a salary tax.
I don't see people displaying animosity towards those who make a good living, just recognizing that those people should shoulder their responsibilities with regards to taxation. We have a progressive income tax in this country which means those who make more money pay more in taxes. If you don't like it, please feel free to choose a country with a better system of taxation that allows you to make the kind of living you enjoy here.
