Do the wealthy pay their fair share and more? The wealthy clearly show their contempt for the middle class as well as a lack of elementary math education. The 5 percent uber-wealthy share 95 percent of the country’s wealth and pay less than 45 percent of the nation’s taxes. While the 95 percent of the rest of the Americans share 5 percent of the country’s wealth and pay over 55 percent of the nation’s taxes.
People should not confuse the tax rate with the reality of what the wealthy and corporations actually do pay. Thanks to numerous tax shelters available only to the wealthy and corporations, the many tax deductions and write offs that the rest of us do not get, untaxed hidden wealth in their off-shore accounts, cheating employees and consumers, false reporting on some of their income tax returns and rampant lying in general, the greedy 5 percent pay no taxes, or a much lower percentage of their income than you and me.
Since they have more than 90 percent of the wealth, they should pay more than 90 percent of the taxes. Case closed! Republican President Dwight D. Eisenhower had the right idea and ordered a 92 percent tax on the wealthy. Today, the middle class pays the bills so that the uber-wealthy can pile up the cash, and that’s plain wrong. Don’t be confused by their blathering smokescreen spin. It’s so simple. You do the math.
Jude Smallwood, The Acreage
