Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: KLP who wrote (128247)	7/29/2005 9:40:14 AM
From: TimF	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793745

To be fair to Elroy I don't think he endorses a formally socialist system, and he recognizes that a severe reduction in the incentive to create wealth is a bad thing. OTOH while still apparently wanting a somewhat capitalist system he does seem to accept the socialist idea that the wealth of an individual exists for and at the sufferance of society. Unfortunately he is far from alone in that belief. The best argument I've heard for inheritence taxes is the idea that a lot of the wealth owned by the very wealthy is in capital gains and that the wealthy die without paying taxes on it because they never sell and then the heirs get a step up in basis. Now much of this wealth is in stocks and companies (at least if they are profitable) pay taxes so you could claim that tax has been paid on the money, but somtimes you can have a large profit on stock in a company that is not profitable (particuarly in the prelude to and during a speculative bubble), and of course there are other forms of capital gains besies gains in stock. I don't think such a situation morally demands an inheritence tax. I don't think there is ever a morally requirement for any type of tax, only a practical need, but it does serve as a defense for something like a one time choice to either be subject to the tax or lose the step up in basis on the gains. I might not actually call for such a plan, but I don't think I could get really upset about it. Tim