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Mar. 2nd, 2009 01:36 pmSo, I wrote a response to the nice lady who wants to interview people earning $250k a year about how the Obama tax hike on the wealthiest will hit them. It is below:
I saw that you were looking to report on changes to taxes on people who earn $250,000 and up in the Boston area. In most cases, I have to tell you, that's not going to horribly impact families that earn that much.
What am I talking about, you say?
Well, there are tax changes to both earned income and to capital gains, aka unearned income. The increase to earned income tax is somewhere between $6,000 and $9,000 a year for people on the low end of that scale, varying with deductions. That's from $500 to $750 a month more they will pay in taxes - out of about $21,000 a month in pre-tax income. Now, that may be a higher percentage of their available free income, but speaking as somebody who really doesn't have any available free income I really don't empathize. My life would be sensationally easier with $21k a month.
What if it's all capital gains tax, though? They'll see a bigger percentage increase, yes; but they don't have to work for that money. So they'll pay an extra $1,050 a month in taxes on that $21,000. They will still have some $17,000 a month with which to pay bills and enjoy themselves. Unless they have an amazingly expensive house with an amazingly expensive mortgage, travel extensively and eat out at expensive restaurants nearly every day they will still have plenty of money spare for their occasional new Mercedes. Again, as somebody scraping to get by I don't empathize. Envy, yes.
People who are wealthy benefit the most from having a stable society. Not only are the means there for them to get even richer, they also benefit from societal stability that prevents them from being easily robbed, or killed, or seeing their wealth or station stripped for no reason.
Am I saying it will not impact the wealthy? No. I have a number of relations who will pay more under this, and I am loath to speak for their money as they earned it, not me. At the same time, none of them have ever told me that they particularly favor low taxes for themselves, as they can afford more.
There are very few families I could see as having any sort of financial difficulty on $250,000 a year, and those are families with multiple children in private school or college. I can empathize with them; at the same time, they made their choice about their priorities, and their children's education comes out first. Frankly, with a better overall public and higher education system they would be in much better shape, and the tax plan is part of a plan to revitalize both of those.
These taxes on the rich are the same or slightly higher taxes than what we had under Mr. Clinton, and we did OK during his Presidency.
People talk about "tax and spend" Democrats, but never seem to talk about "starve and spend" Republicans.
If you have read all the way through this, then I thank you for your consideration.
(finis)
I do value my friends regardless of income. While I do not like speaking for other people's money I do occasionally speak to the common good.
I saw that you were looking to report on changes to taxes on people who earn $250,000 and up in the Boston area. In most cases, I have to tell you, that's not going to horribly impact families that earn that much.
What am I talking about, you say?
Well, there are tax changes to both earned income and to capital gains, aka unearned income. The increase to earned income tax is somewhere between $6,000 and $9,000 a year for people on the low end of that scale, varying with deductions. That's from $500 to $750 a month more they will pay in taxes - out of about $21,000 a month in pre-tax income. Now, that may be a higher percentage of their available free income, but speaking as somebody who really doesn't have any available free income I really don't empathize. My life would be sensationally easier with $21k a month.
What if it's all capital gains tax, though? They'll see a bigger percentage increase, yes; but they don't have to work for that money. So they'll pay an extra $1,050 a month in taxes on that $21,000. They will still have some $17,000 a month with which to pay bills and enjoy themselves. Unless they have an amazingly expensive house with an amazingly expensive mortgage, travel extensively and eat out at expensive restaurants nearly every day they will still have plenty of money spare for their occasional new Mercedes. Again, as somebody scraping to get by I don't empathize. Envy, yes.
People who are wealthy benefit the most from having a stable society. Not only are the means there for them to get even richer, they also benefit from societal stability that prevents them from being easily robbed, or killed, or seeing their wealth or station stripped for no reason.
Am I saying it will not impact the wealthy? No. I have a number of relations who will pay more under this, and I am loath to speak for their money as they earned it, not me. At the same time, none of them have ever told me that they particularly favor low taxes for themselves, as they can afford more.
There are very few families I could see as having any sort of financial difficulty on $250,000 a year, and those are families with multiple children in private school or college. I can empathize with them; at the same time, they made their choice about their priorities, and their children's education comes out first. Frankly, with a better overall public and higher education system they would be in much better shape, and the tax plan is part of a plan to revitalize both of those.
These taxes on the rich are the same or slightly higher taxes than what we had under Mr. Clinton, and we did OK during his Presidency.
People talk about "tax and spend" Democrats, but never seem to talk about "starve and spend" Republicans.
If you have read all the way through this, then I thank you for your consideration.
(finis)
I do value my friends regardless of income. While I do not like speaking for other people's money I do occasionally speak to the common good.
