Sunday, March 8, 2009

The Folly of Class-Envy...










"Only 2% of households earn over $250,000 a year - so yes they are rare. They're also the ones who have benefited from the phony "investor class" economy that ballooned at the expense of workers whose wages have barely doubled in 30 years." (Liberal poster)
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WoW! That statement is entirely and completely untrue.
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FACT: investors don't earn "income" from their investments, they earn "Capital Gains" which are taxed at a much lower, flat rate, which is necessary to stimulate further investment (risk of capital), as THAT’S what investment is, putting already accrued (worked for or inherited) Capital at risk. The lower Capital Gains rate recognizes that a leveraged, invested dollar is worth many, MANY times what a dollar exchanged for labor is.

Moreover, the income disparity mentioned, is virtually ENTIRELY the result of differing costs of living throughout the country.

The overwhelming bulk  (well over 90% of those earning over $250,000/year) of the highest income earners tend to live in high cost of living areas, like NYC, San Francisco, the Metro D.C. area, L.A, etc.).

For instance, in NYC $123,000/year is exactly equivalent to $60,000/year in Houston TX. or Atlanta, GA.

The "Investor Class" isn't hit by increasing income taxes, regular working people ARE. In other words, those "suckers" who work for a living in those high cost-of-living areas. For instance, two cops in NYC earn over $250K/year with overtime factored in, so do two Corrections Officers (with OT), so does an Accountant (CPA) and a school teacher.

And so do many of the small business owners, who produce upwards of 80% of the jobs in America!Hey! I'm ALL for giving tax breaks to those living in low cost-of-living States like North Dakota, Arkansas, Wyoming and Montana...those folks work HARD and under some very rough conditions.

I just don't like the idea of further punishing those folks living in far more expensive, not to mention less picturesque places, like New York City, San Francisco and places like that.

2 comments:

heidianne jackson said...

as one of those business owners helping to employ 80% of the populace i can agree with your post 100%. good going, jmk.

JMK said...

Class envy is really an anti-business ethic Heidianne and the fact that the vast majority of the disaprity in incomes is due to labor costs in high cost-of-living areas, like NYC, the D.C. corridor and San Francisco puts the lie to the inane idea of "the working rich."

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