[Locke]

Originally Posted by rubecube

I do wonder if it's time to start introducing some form of inheritance tax in this country. If we want to say that capitalism is meritocratic system, then let's make it truly meritocratic.

Originally Posted by Mr.Coffee

Wow. Disagree. That would be double dipping for sure by the old government.

Originally Posted by Slava

I don't see the logic here. We should enact an inheritance/estate tax to prevent becoming the US...Although they have had such a tax for basically two hundred years in one form or another?

We already pay enough tax and frankly there are a chunk of these that are already double dipping by the governments. I don't think we need another egregious example of that idea.

See, I look at this from both sides, yes it would be double-dipping, no argument there, but at the same time the group of people who are dying right now (Boomers) perpetrated one of the most egregious misappropriations of wealth and resources in centuries and there is no mechanism in place to rectify that.

What you see as a result of that is a huge disparity of wealth and resources and ultimately a steady decline in upwards mobility and even a steady increase downwards mobility.

Whenever a system sways too far to one side or the other a correction is required and you cant keep going back to the 'middle-class well' because eventually that well is going to either run dry or simply dig their heels in and refuse.

The effort and sacrifices made by the 'well my dad worked hard and saved and was frugal' is not the issue, its about keeping the system solvent. There are vast sums of wealth in untouchable places, there needs to be a mechanism to get that wealth back into the general pool.

Further to which, people within that demographic had many methods of tax savings and deferrals and likely over the course of their lives paid a significantly lower percentage of tax than others without the means or access to these methods.

A 'deferral' by definition indicates that at some point the Bill is going to come Due, but with the lack of an Estate Tax it does in effect become a deferral in perpetuity.

Besides, are not 'Tax the Rich' and 'wealth re-distrubtion' the new, chic and acceptable Mantras?

Its not sexy and its veritable Political Suicide, but it may eventually end up as the only viable alternative.

I'm not a proponent of an Estate Tax, but when I look at the way the system is trending it does seem like one the best tools with which to effect a correction.

I'll add, anecdotally though, there could be an additional social benefit to this as well and that is reducing the number of trust fund kids.

Not having to work, not having to struggle and a lack of desperation tends to create soft idiots which I think we see our society trending towards.

Its a very common feeling, "I'll struggle harder so my kids wont have to!"

Your kids should have to.