Yep. And this analysis assumes that payroll taxes aren’t taxes. Include those and the tax rates start looking about the same.
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And intercst wrote “There’d be an economic renaissance in America if we brought the wealthy up to the tax rate paid by nurses, teachers and firefighters.” So, it appears that it is already the case (and more).
DB2
Not only that, but not all “income” is taxed the same because it’s not all labelled as “income”. Some of it is sheltered and deferred, some of it is taxed at MUCH lower rates, etc.
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The Fool is ignoring all the income that escapes taxation. The biggest loophole is the stepped-up cost basis upon death. The second biggest loophole is that fact that investment income is taxed at a fraction of wage & salary income. The dumbest thing you can do in America , tax-wise, is to work for a living. As Warren Buffett pointed out at a shareholder meeting, “We {Berkshire} are not taxable investors”. Among living billionaires, Buffet is the King of tax avoidance. A big part of my Retire Early strategy is learning from the Master. As long as you’re not earning wage & salary income, you don’t need to be a billionaire to be taxed like one. {{ LOL }}
intercst
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