"Yes, bus. I have never seen an income that I would not be happy to pay taxes on. Assets… Like stocks? No way. I know of a person who took his own life when his assets were taxed at the peak of their valuation during the dot com bubble (bought his ISOs and had no idea how they were taxed).’
That’s terrible, Bunsen. How tragic for his family.
I was not claiming it was a wealth tax (but in fact it works like a wealth tax - because the tax is prepaid). It was an example used to illustrate what can happen if a “wealth tax” (tax as a % of someone’s net worth) is imposed on assets that are highly volatile.
Anyway, UCB, got a good idea how we can solve the problem with our diminishing middle class etc.?
Post #159… @Busdriver11, so you in favor of taking from people. Isn’t that what you say taxes do…take from people? You are just not in favor of taking from people who are worth $15 billion.
Jim Simons is one of the best traders in the world. He’s is smarter than me…at least in many areas. He worked harder.
He should have more wealth than I have. He’s worth $15 billion. So having more wealth is not an issue. It’s never going to be an issue.
He spent a lot of time in his career taking some of his income and shifting that income from ordinary income…rates you usually pay and shifting that income to capital gains. Looks like he has saved billions of dollars and pays lower tax rates than you do.
I guess you are ok with this.
The above is a strawman argument.
I deleted the rest of this paragraph. It’s a little mean. 
This is false.
There are proposals that will help people mentioned in the op or this thread.
“There are proposals that will help people mentioned in the op or this thread.”
Perhaps. However, when one proposes far too much, with it likely that far less money will be coming in than needed, at least one of three things has to happen. The tax hit goes way further down the income scale, the promises don’t get kept, or the deficit balloons. In addition, when you change the tax system, individuals and companies behavior adjusts accordingly. Nothing happens in a vacuum, and the law of unintended consequences applies.
Sometimes.
@busdriver11, you are afraid. You are afraid of change. Let’s be honest. 
We can’t take more from Jim Simons, right?
“Post #159… @Busdriver11, so you in favor of taking from people. Isn’t that what you say taxes do…take from people? You are just not in favor of taking from people who are worth $15 billion.”
I think you must be thinking of someone else, or repeating a talking point. I have no ideological objection to taxes, however, I do not think they should be at confiscatory rates. Not for anyone. Right now I don’t think they are at that level, unless you’re a middle class wage earner in a high tax state, with few deductions. Nor do I think there should ever be a tax upon your net worth, that is confiscatory.
"@busdriver11, you are afraid. You are afraid of change. Let’s be honest.
We can’t take more from Jim Simons, right?"
Depends upon the change. If it’s intelligent and healthy change, it’s fine. If it’s change just for the sake of change, to promote a politician’s power or some sort of ideology, probably not my cup of tea.
As far as Jim Simons, I have said that I think all income should be taxed the same. I think I’ve probably said that a hundred times in these threads. So I guess that means Jim Simons would get taxed at ordinary income rates, if I were king.
One reason people say they want to tax the wealthiest people is they aren’t taxed the same. Their tax rates are less.
Yet you say it won’t make a difference if we raise taxes on the wealthiest. . (It could make a difference. We used to tax wealthier people more). Then you say So let’s not raise taxes. That’s takin. taking. That’s taking from Bill Gates. That’s taking from Warren Buffett. Well…their tax rates are lower.
The used to run Microsoft, Ballmer, got a billion dollar subsidy for buying the Clippers basketball team. But we can’t change anything because that is taking. Better not change those rules because that’s taking.
You speak out of both sides of your mouth.
I think I’m consistent. You are attributing things you think I said, to me, incorrectly. Or part of sentences, that have not been elaborated upon. Kind of reminds me of arguments I have with my mother. I say one small comment, and all of a sudden I turn into GWB, and I want us to breathe dirty air and drink dirty water( as said in a shriek)!
Nevertheless, we’ve probably detoured partyof5’s thread enough. Though I think it’s relevant to try to come up with a solution for these sad stories, I don’t think we’ll come to any resolution. :o3
No. I’m not attributing… You need to reread your posts.
‘Taking’ is a big word for you.
There are solutions.
Obamacare for example is imperfect. But… There are now 18 million people covered that were not covered before. We have the lowest percentage of uninsured people in this country. Ever. The percentage of people who are having trouble paying for health care has dropped since Obamacare was implemented. We were told we were going to lose jobs because of Obamacare. Didn’t happen. Check out the job numbers since Obamacare passed. We were told the budget deficts were going to go to the moon because of Obamacare. The deficit plummeted. We were told healthcare costs are going to go through the roof. Instead the costs are moderating. (May not be because of Obamacare. But healthcare costs are moderating).
If we listen to some people, we would never know this.
This is relevant to the thread. Big time. There would be millions of poor people in better shape if medicaid was expanded.
Can we keep this on topic? I know everyone is passionate, but I would like to keep the thread open. Ultimately, we need more solutions especially for those pre retirees who are out of work.
I just gave you a solution. Medicaid expansion. 
It is a shame how little our society values seasoned workforce. It is tough out there if you lose your job past late 40s.
@doschicos, that is a big problem!
How about Medicare expansion instead., including dental necessities. Available to anyone who wants it, however, cost based upon income and assets. For people who have poor or no insurance options, or are too young to receive it, could be a Godsend. Expanded Medicaid, based upon what the states want to do isn’t going to help the lady who is constantly moving around.
@dstark I agree with Medicaid expansion
@doschicos Isnt sad that one is considered old at age 50 yet you are expected to work another 15 years or so. I’ve been encouraging my kids to really think about their careers and job security.
No family? No friends? No unemployment office? No job training available from the state or county?
I can see that some people might end up in this situation without it being their fault, but in many cases, if you don’t have retirement funds, who is to blame but you?
At the very end of the article, it says “she raised three kids”? Where the heck are they? Like, we all should be compassionate all, but charity begins at home as they say. If her kids all passed away, that’s one thing.
It sounds like a bunch of poor choices, which are being compounded by poor choices. I don’t know how many people their situation would pertain to.
I would be highly offended if I were one of the 1% and my taxes went up to help these people. They made choices, do we need to pay for them.
I’m not saying the tax code shouldn’t be looked at (I’m in favor of a minimum tax - the rich can make choices on what deductions they will take, but they can’t take them all at once, there should be an absolute minimum tax no matter what), but I hate articles like this.
I will give out money or time or effort to help family and friends. I don’t want to be forced to do charity.
I’ve always thought there should be some way to combine our need for childcare and our need to make older people feel valued and productive. KInd of replacing the old extended family unit.
Yes, @partyof5. We are living longer and many working to an older age, yet I think society values youth more than ever.
Yes, our elementary school tried to have a program where seniors came and read to kids. It was nice, but many SRs have to worry about getting infections from schoolchildren which will be much more serious for the SR than the healthy kid.