Taxing the rich is always a vague term because the average person always assumes it is everyone who earns more than they do. The tax rate has been played with more than anything in government since especially the dawn of Marxism at the turn of the 20th century.
Defining the “rich” has been historically all over the place. In the UK, the current definition of the “rich” that throws you into the 45% top rate of tax kicks in at an income level of around $250,000 (£151,000) on par with the USA. However, one of the great tax avoidance countries has been Italy where the top rate of 43% applies at just $125,000. If we look at Denmark, the government defines the “rich” at just $60,000 and then taxes all workers at 60% on all earnings thereafter.
Back in 1966, the Beatles released their song “Taxman” as a protest against the 95% “supertax” rate introduced by Harold Wilson’s Labour government, which the band had to pay. The point is, taxes do not go to help the people as much as the socialists claim. Most go to government employees and now we face massive promises and unfunded pension plans. These people have paid themselves so well, it is no different from Yanukovych’s corruption, just not to such an extreme. Nonetheless, these government officials are lowering the standard of living for everyone else and driving the unemployment rate through the roof. They cannot see that a public servant is no different economically from having a maid at home who consumes your income and adds nothing to it. What is worse, the maid has access to your bank accounts and gives herself a raise whenever she spends too much and it is your problem if there is not enough left in the account for yourself.
Tax unrest has been a huge event historically that even the Roman Empire in 119AD issued a coin showing he was burning the tax records. The American Revolution with its hallmark “No taxation without representation” provides a classic example how taxes caused the overthrow of Monarchy. This is critical for all we get from Obama is more taxes and they always pretend they are after the rich, but somehow that line moves rapidly.
As the economy turns down in Russia and China, we are starting to see aggression. When it turns down in the USA following 2015.75, look out below because the US will be raising taxes even more.
