Guest Post by Simon Black
In a concept paper called “Treat Wealth Like Wages”, the ranking member of the US Senate Finance Committee laid out a plan late last week to radically overhaul the tax code in a way never before seen.
Just as you’d expect from the title, his central idea is to tax wealth; if you own just about anything, this Senator wants you to start paying an annual tithe to the federal government.
It’s sort of like how property tax works: you don’t actually -own- your own property. You’re just renting it from the government.
They charge you a tax each year– some percentage of the property’s value– to use the land. And if you don’t pay your property taxes, they’ll come and take it from you.
Now they want to create a similar federal tax that applies to almost every major asset you own.
This includes CASH in your bank account. Financial assets like stocks and bonds. Private business and partnership interests. Your entire real estate portfolio. Collectible assets like art and fine wine.
Never mind that you’ve bought these assets with money that’s already been taxed. Now they want to tax it again, every year. And when you die they want to tax it again.
They even included Individual Retirement Accounts.
Hell, for that matter they even proposed taxing “household goods” beyond a certain threshold. So you could even pay tax on your toaster oven.
What I found really interesting about this proposal, though, is that the guy who authored it is NOT one of the 10,000 people running for President right now.
In fact, this US Senator (Ron Wyden from Oregon) isn’t even up for re-election until 2022, at which point he’ll likely retire.
We’d expect to hear about wealth taxes from all the Bolshevik presidential candidates who are seeking attention and headlines. Or from some firebrand Twitter Queen who hates rich people.
But Ron Wyden is neither of those. He’s a seasoned, 70-year old US Senator who created a detailed 33-page plan on why AND how to implement a wealth tax.
This shows that the idea is really catching fire.
The wealth tax, of course, joins a slew of other taxes and hikes that have been proposed by the motley gang of Bolsheviks.
Several candidates plan to drastically raise the Death Tax while slashing exemptions. Others want to raise the top income tax rate to 70%. Another wants to tax UNREALIZED (i.e. paper) gains on investments.
They always say, of course, that they only want to tax the wealthy. They might even mean it.
But take a look at the income tax itself as a great historical example.
When the income tax was first implemented in 1913, it was intended to affect only the wealthiest households in America. Plus, the base rate was just 1%, and the top rate was 7%.
It was only a few years later that the middle class got ensnared into paying taxes. And by 1922, there were FIFTY SIX different tax brackets, all the way up to 73%, with nearly everyone in America owing a ‘fair share’.
Point is, whatever they create to tax the rich almost always ends up affecting the middle class.
And this latest proposal shows that the idea of a wealth tax has a LOT of momentum.
It’s no longer some lofty sound byte. There are detailed plans and real support behind it… which means you might want to strongly consider your own options for a Plan B.
For some people, that might even mean picking up and moving. It’s not such a radical concept… people do it all the time, especially state-to-state.
Just a few days ago, Billionaire Carl Icahn he announced he was moving to Florida to save on New-York’s ever-increasing taxes.
He also said that his whole office is moving with him… and that anyone who doesn’t move won’t have a job anymore.
And a long list of billionaires has already taken advantage of Florida to take advantage of this including Paul Tudor Jones, David Tepper, Eddie Lampert, etc.
But for those who are willing to leave the mainland, there are even better places.
Sir John Templeton, one of the first-ever billionaire investors, moved to the Bahamas late in his career. And from his tax savings alone, he was able to increase his charitable donations by an ADDITIONAL $100 million per year.
Puerto Rico is one place that offers exceptional tax advantages; investment income and capital gains are taxed at 0%… and corporate tax is just 4%… all in a tropical paradise that’s a 2 hour flight from the US mainland.
US citizens don’t even need a passport to move here. Because Puerto Rico is a US territory, moving to PR is no different than moving from New York to Florida.
I’ve said it over and over again, but it’s worth repeating– these incentives won’t last forever.
That’s why I insist the time to start strongly considering them and taking action is NOW.
It is my sincere desire to provide readers of this site with the best unbiased information available, and a forum where it can be discussed openly, as our Founders intended. But it is not easy nor inexpensive to do so, especially when those who wish to prevent us from making the truth known, attack us without mercy on all fronts on a daily basis. So each time you visit the site, I would ask that you consider the value that you receive and have received from The Burning Platform and the community of which you are a vital part. I can't do it all alone, and I need your help and support to keep it alive. Please consider contributing an amount commensurate to the value that you receive from this site and community, or even by becoming a sustaining supporter through periodic contributions. [Burning Platform LLC - PO Box 1520 Kulpsville, PA 19443] or Paypal
-----------------------------------------------------
To donate via Stripe, click here.
-----------------------------------------------------
Use promo code ILMF2, and save up to 66% on all MyPillow purchases. (The Burning Platform benefits when you use this promo code.)
This is what wealth and income inequality, if it gets severe enough, leads to. Good or bad, right or wrong, like it or not, wealth/income inequality leads to bad things. Think of this…if poor people outnumber rich people, who do you think poor people are going to vote for? And, if the poor do that and all it does is make things worse for everyone, well hello dumbshits, it all started with severe wealth/income inequality. Let’s not even get started with the role played by the fed.reserve.gov.
Fair enough. But wealth isn’t equal. And people aren’t equal. Neither has ever been, nor will they be.
Also depends on what your definition of ‘wealthy’ is. I make a comfortable 5 figure income, and live in a decent house in a decent neighborhood, and have a mortgage. I have one nice car that Im making payments on, and an older ones thats been paid off for many years. Aside from the car and mortgage, I have little other debt. I have some savings. To most people, I sound like a regular middle class guy. To someone living in a hovel, or some communist kid living in his parents basement, I probably sound and look ‘wealthy’. To most of the world, I am quite wealthy. My point is that if you meet the criteria I outlined above, sooner or later you’re going to find out you are now considered “rich” and have to pay these same taxes. Best just keep the camel away from the tent, lest he stick his nose in there.
hey, this is nothing, move to NY, and on every bill (insurance, utility, phone) there is a line or fee attributed to NY, your car insurance bill has a $20 fee, just for the hell of it, no explanation, no one knows where the loot goes (the general fund)
this is more closer to what the rest of the states can expect, little fees and new taxes added on to existing payments, rather than implementing new property or VAT. People hate new taxes but will grudgingly accept minor increases on existing payments.
Wow, a white middle class Midwesterner comes up with a plan to tax everything you own ? Who is this guy? Wikipedia bio says he’s one of (((them))). Oh, now it’s all clear as a bell. He’s not what he appears at all, and he camouflaged himself quite well. He’s not white and he’s not a middle class Midwesterner, he’s a Jew. Again, another one trying to “Jew” us out of our money. The problem rears it’s ugly head again. Every. Single. Time.
He makes a pretty good argument for moving to PR.
And in the opposing column.
Why are you showing me pictures of Detroit? 🙂
Agreed, but… my big issue with that kind of thinking is this; how hard would it be for a foreign entity to overrun a tropical “paradise” like Puerto Rico? If the poop truly impacts the propellers the world over, will there actually be ANY safe havens? I tend to think not. Thus, I will remain at home here in the former USA and defend that which I hold dear, until I am no longer able. My body will then succumb to the inevitable and I’ll go be with the Lord in eternity!
What, me worry?
?
I like the Opportunity Zone aspect of PR. If things work out the way I hope, in the next 6-12 months, PR could be a real consideration for me.
Say hello to Peter for me
And you are always a foreigner in a foreign land.
That’s the beauty You get to piss them off instead of the other way around I personally love it
Hey whatever floats your boat but I left after marrying a beautiful Turkish girl Been pretty happy here Not perfect but good
If you can stand being surrounded by PRs
Oh, the numbers.
On the other hand, in GDR this was real. The Stasi intelligence spotted owners of art and antique furniture, when found, the owner had to pay his taxes, for the years before too. When he was lucky, he was not in jail afterwards.
On the bright side. It would be a good way to get rid of heavy broken appliances. Stop paying the tax.
Well, if they are going to tax my bullets, I’ll be sure and use up a whole lot of them before they can. I suspect that such a proposal would likely encourage a few million others to follow suit.
Opportunity zones are designed to spur economic development by providing tax benefits to investors
Would be nice if the whole damn country was an OZ, and partake of economic development yes ? Like each and everyone of us who live here ?
That was Ron Paul’s plan. Make the entire US an Economic Opportunity Zone.
Maybe just Detroit and Newark and call it a day
This is socioeconomic catabolic collapse in action. Useful aspects of society are sacrificed to preserve the welfare state. For a short time.
Might be useful to have farmland and learn about low-tech low-input organic farming practices.
“They charge you a tax each year– some percentage of the property’s value– to use the land.”
I’m sure I have made no secret of how I feel about liberty, independence and the overreach of The State, but this common and absolutely baseless fiction has got to be addressed every time it comes up.
Property taxes are for services provided to those who reside within each municipality, the most basic being maintenance of the roads we frequently use, waste removal, public schools, libraries, parks, police and fire protection among a variety of other benefits. No part of property taxes go to the State or Federal Government. You own your land- if the mortgage is clear and it is yours to use as you see fit, to reside on, to control who may or may not cross upon it, who you decide to bequeath it to, etc. The payment of a tax on that property is your contribution to the community in which you reside and if you are a good neighbor you pay it gladly because it benefits everyone around you as well as do their contributions benefit you.
And in the end, no, you don’t ever really own the land, or anything else for that matter. We arrive with nothing and we take nothing with us. The abstract and baseless concept of the atomized individual adrift from all others with some set of inalienable rights unconnected to our relationships with family, friends, neighbors and associates is every bit as empty as pure collectivism.
I agree with everything else.
Hardscrabble Farmer. The money goes where they want it to go. The infrastructure where I live is falling apart, yet the municipalities and State continue to pay salaries, benefits and retirement pay with bennies that most of the citizens can only dream of. And not just the base taxes, but also Direct Assessement for whatever boondoogle is in fashion. Need to teach ninos in spanish and english, float a school bond! Remember the OC Bond debacle? Whose money did the county lose?
By the way, builders pay for instrasture, skool fees, etc., when they develop the properties and when they operate their properties they pay for utilities including in some cases sewer fees even if they are on septic. I know you are a contributor here, but wake up. I only read a bit of your comment.
Private, competitive businesses provide services we all need too. The difference is in the nature of the relationship – violence versus voluntary. Additionally, there are choices and competition to keep prices low, quality high, and competitors honest. Government monopoly “services” fall short on all accounts. This is not a criticism of the need, just the way we are forced to get there. And THAT is the key difference.
Great picture and an absolute truth.
“We arrive with nothing and we take nothing with us.”
What we do with what we have while here is key.
HSF – almost no one will gladly pay for the extraordinary waste that is generated by local government.
For all your glad paying, this article suggests NH has the second worst infrastructure in the US. It seems you and your neighbors may need to gladly pay more if that is the case.
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/06/28/the-10-states-most-in-need-of-an-infrastructure-overhaul.html
Again, my experience and what I read in the MSM are polar opposites.
My property taxes in NJ were- per acre compared to what we own today- 200 times higher with far worse roads, much higher crime, and public servants that treated the citizens like shit all the time in virtually every interaction. That’s a big part of why we left.
I now live in a community, where the safety of my family, neighbors and the rest of the community are inextricably intertwined. When our barn caught fire those people risked their lives to save our home from getting caught up in the conflagration and no one had to check and see if I was covered under a policy from a private firefighting company. If my cows get out the local cop will help me get them back in and when I take my stuff to the dump there’s always a place to drop stuff off that’s clean, well organized and orderly. If I am looking for some hard to find title, my library will borrow it from some other library and call me when it arrives. When it snows you can hear the plows moving down the roads no matter what time it is and they don’t quit until all of the roads are clear. We want for nothing in the way of services and the tax rate is manageable. I’m sure the folks at MSNBC who wrote that critique were as thorough at doing their research on NH as they have been on any other topic, which is to say, not very.
My experience counts for something, even if you disagree. I feel privileged to pay property taxes in a town that is safe, clean, well cared for and still retains it’s rural character because the beneficiaries of those tax dollars are not living in grandeur in some far away capitol, they’re barbecuing my burgers on their grill in the evening, they’re keeping an eye on my place when I’m away, and they’re willing to put their lives on the line to look out for my property as if it were their own. That may not be the case in places like NYC or Chicago, but it is where we live. And like I said before, while the title is in our possession we’re free to do with it as we see fit without interference for as long as we live and we we’re gone, we have to give it up completely anyway because you can’t take it with you.
I envy you as well as I am happy for you HSF.
HSF, I like you. Really. You’re hard working and intelligent, a self made man. But don’t pay your tax bill for one year, and you’ll see who really owns your properties and goods. And it’s not you. A little thing called Eminent Domain is what they use to justify their thefts.
You people worried about Bolshevik toasters while Bolshevik Trump wants your guns?
So left wingers like Ralph Northam and Justin Trudeau can dress in blackface and there’s no problem. Trump would be impeached tomorrow for the same actions…Leftists can mock colored people…
Just because I liked that comment does not mean you are forgiven.