a thoughtful web.
Good ideas and conversation. No ads, no tracking.   Login or Take a Tour!
comment by thenewgreen

    SUPPOSE that an investor you admire and trust comes to you with an investment idea. “This is a good one,” he says enthusiastically. “I’m in it, and I think you should be, too.”

    Would your reply possibly be this? “Well, it all depends on what my tax rate will be on the gain you’re saying we’re going to make. If the taxes are too high, I would rather leave the money in my savings account, earning a quarter of 1 percent.” Only in Grover Norquist’s imagination does such a response exist.

-well said.

I do like that he proposes to raise the 250,000 bar to 500,000. 250k is a very nice household income but if you have a family of 5, you would be at from rich these days.





mk  ·  4627 days ago  ·  link  ·  

From what I know, I think Obama is saying $200k for an individual, and $250k for a family. That seems to punish married couples, although I suppose they could file separately. He should just make it $200k for an individual, or $400k for a family.

The difference could be made up on the high-end, taxing Warren et al. with a marginal rate like he suggests.

thenewgreen  ·  4627 days ago  ·  link  ·  

That makes much more sense to me.

[edit] and filing separately comes with its own penalties. There are tax advantages to being married.

user-inactivated  ·  4627 days ago  ·  link  ·  

To me that's an argument not to have very many children. (I think you indulged in a small bit of hyperbole with your example.)

thenewgreen  ·  4627 days ago  ·  link  ·  

The average household has 2.5 children. Having 3 is not hyperbole. Don't get me wrong, a $250k household intake is not too shabby even with 5 people under a roof but it is not "wealthy" either.

user-inactivated  ·  4627 days ago  ·  link  ·  

No, no, I meant hyperbole in the latter statement. I would consider 250k and a family of five rich. It's all a matter of perspective, though.

"Rich" these days is, to me, being able to put your kids through college easily, I guess.

thenewgreen  ·  4626 days ago  ·  link  ·  

"Rich" to me is not having to worry about a paycheck.

user-inactivated  ·  4626 days ago  ·  link  ·  

That's "happy."

thenewgreen  ·  4626 days ago  ·  link  ·  

true.