roman_mir's Journal: Class warfare

Given the modern time attitudes on class warfare with comments like these insisting that the class war is waged by the rich on the middle class and the poor, and generally the media and politicians insisting that the 'rich are not paying the fair share', I decided to take a look at historic income tax data that can still be found on IRS site
Individual income tax returns starting from 1954

Business tax returns starting from 1959

The current tax returns up to 2010

It is a surprise to look at those records, since the currently accepted message is that the rich are paying much less than before and that they were paying much more in the fifties when the tax rates were up to 70 and even 91%.

Happy to report that this is pure nonsensical propaganda.

An example of individual income returns from 1958 and 2012 shows that only 236 people paid some money at the silly 91% rate that is out of 45.6 Million tax returns that were filed.

Another interesting finding is that 0.178% of all returns filed paid 35% or higher, which means only 8549 people paid 35% in taxes or more. 3.5% of all income taxes in 1958 were paid by these top earners, who paid 35% or more in taxes.

Compare that to the current situation, there are 2.5Million taxpayers (which is almost 2% of all tax payers) that paid 35% or more.
Interestingly enough today 3.5% of top earners pay 41.5% of all income taxes.

So how can this be that the populist message is that in 1950s the tax code was so much more progressive and the rich paid so much more in taxes (and that's apparently why the economy was so strong, or so the liberals and progressives tell us today), yet today 2.5 Million people pay 35% or more in taxes and pay 41.5% of all income taxes while in 1958 only 8549 people (0.178 of all filers) paid 35% or more in taxes, which constituted only 3.5% of all income taxes.

Clearly the propaganda machine is well and running.

Re:

[flaming error]

I don't get the "punishes success" meme. How many cases have there been of people turning down $5 because it would cost them $1?

What does "success" even mean? People who have boatloads of money fall into five categories:
1) well-connected sons of bitches
2) criminal sons of bitches,
3) savvy, driven, lucky sons of bitches,
4) the just plain fabulously lucky
5) Warren Buffett

Having any of those groups kick in a little more won't stop the wheels of commerce, nor sap ambition from the human race.

By the way, I'm p

Re:

[flaming error]

5) Warren Buffett and The Woz

The shifting meaning of 'rich'

[Arker]

A 'rich' person is one who doesnt need wage income. The idea of soaking the rich with an income tax is therefore nonsensical. The truly rich are not necessarily the ones that earn high incomes. They are people that control truly monstrous amounts of wealth through political power and favors.