Comment on How would you actually tax the ultra wealthy?

• SolidShake@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  So. If I make 50,000 dollars a year but only need 40,000 to live. And I save that 10,000 a year for 20 years. You want to tax me on that $200,000 I saved? Lol wtf

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  • 4am@lemmy.zip ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    No, but if you own $4billion in stocks and you borrow against it to live off of then you’ve realized that value and you get taxed heavily on it.

    The idea is to get them to stop doing the “unlimited money glitch” of doing this.

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  • SomeoneSomewhere@lemmy.nz ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Most of the current plans for wealth taxes start in the region of $5-$50 million, taxing wealth above that bracket (like other progressive taxes). Do you expect to save $5 million, let alone $50 million?

    Most of the seriously proposed tax rates are also in the 1-3% range, maybe 5% on the very high end. Again, of wealth above that threshold.

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    • porous_grey_matter@lemmy.ml ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      Wealth taxes in Switzerland start at ~150k and include the family residence. And capital doesn’t flee. It’s a great implementation and income taxes are lower commensurately so that it works for people.

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    • blarghly@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      If you spend it eating out, drinking, getting your house renovated, flying somewhere - then you end up paying tax and spending money and there’s some trickle down. If it sits in a bank account or in stocks or real estate, less so.

      This is a fundamental misunderstanding of how an individual’s wealth can be useful to society. Societies become prosperous when they do things that are good for people, and that is what the money is best spent on - making society better. Sure, if they go to the bar every night and spend $200k getting hammered, maybe we netted a little extra tax revenue. And the bar is certainly doing better. But it is far better for everyone if that money becomes the startup capital for, say, a new plumbing business or taco restaurant or law firm or real estate development. Put it into something that actually does something

      And that’s essentially what buying stocks is. Putting your money in stocks is good for the economy.

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      • pivot_root@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        Most people with that little money aren’t going to going out of their way and assume the risk of directly investing in new ventures. They’re going to put it in some managed or unmanaged fund, and that money is going to be invested in something safe and presumably profitable, like a megacorp that’s too big to fail.

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  • porous_grey_matter@lemmy.ml ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Yes, but you’ll only pay like a thousand a year on those savings, and your costs will go down to 30,000 thanks to improved infrastructure, healthcare, etc.

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    • SolidShake@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      That’s insanely stupid. You already pay taxes from your income and you pay taxes spending money. No ken should ever be taxed on money they have saved. Ever.

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      • porous_grey_matter@lemmy.ml ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        Nope, not only is it not stupid, it is pretty much the best possible taxation system unless your explicit goal is to keep poor people poor and rich people rich.

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