SO, WHAT PRECENTAGE EQUATES TO BEING SOMEONE’S ‘FAIR SHARE’?

 

 

Ya know, ever since Barry has been talking about all his ‘fair share’ crap, I’ve been more than just a little curious about just what amount that might be. And what it might be, that all of those parasitic malcontents among us who, by the way, pay absolutely nothing in the way of an income tax, think is a fair amount to be paid by those of us who do. And what is it, other than jealously of course, that makes these slugs think that they are somehow entitled to make demands on those who decided to make something of their lives. So with Barry now fresh from his re-election victory and riding what’s been described as being a wave of confidence, he appears to be quite eager to set about doing the bidding of those who pay absolutely nothing and to enthusiastically set about collecting the scalps from the class war that he appears to have won.

Americans, Barry said in his post-election news conference earlier this month, "want to make sure that middle-class folks aren't bearing the entire burden and sacrifice when it comes to some of these big challenges. They expect that folks at the top are doing their fair share as well." The we heard from ‘Old Stretch’ Pelosi as she echoed this same point in a fundraising pitch that was sent out on Monday: "Voters sent a clear message to Republicans in the election: we must stand up for the middle class and ensure the wealthy pay their fair share." Although Barry and his fellow Democrats repeatedly call on wealthier Americans to pay what's referred to as their "fair share," they never really mention what that amount might be, or what percentage of the nation's tax burden the wealthy should be made responsible for covering.

How about we look at where things stand percentage-wise now. Because, you see, the top 1 percent of American households actually paid 39 percent of income taxes in 2009, and that's according to the most recent data compiled by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), also the top 5 percent of taxpayers paid 64 percent. But income taxes don’t really tell the whole story, because lower-income Americans do pay payroll taxes. But even when taking into account all forms of taxation, the top 1 percent still paid 22 percent of federal taxes while earning just 13.4 percent of household income. And the top 5 percent paid 40 percent of all federal taxes, despite earning only 26 percent of all income. And yet, as incredible as it may sound, this is perceived, by Barry and those who pay nothing, as not being their fair share.

No matter how you slice the numbers, it's hard to understand why anyone would think that the wealthy aren't already shouldering a burden commensurate with their blessings. But to be of that opinion one must actually possess a brain and be smart enough to see through all of the class-warfare crap constantly harped on by Barry. And also, I think it fair to say, that it doesn’t hurt to possess the twisted entitlement mentality that Barry succeeded in using to his advantage during his quest for re-election. And in the coming weeks, I'm quite sure we can expect that Barry will keep repeating his campaign "fair share" slogan as a prominent part of his continued call to raise taxes on those earning more than $250,000 per year. Keep in mind here that he also wants to close additional loopholes and limit deductions to increase their tax burden even further.

But these geniuses who insist upon joining with Barry in making these demands that the ‘rich’ pay more, need to bear something else in mind, although I seriously doubt it will evver cross their minds. Because on top of whatever tax rates that actually do go into effect in any deal it is that may be reached to avert plunging over that so-called fiscal cliff, there will be several additional ‘new’, and fairly substantial, taxes due to Barry's national health care law. These include, for instance, a 0.9 percent Medicare tax hike for individuals earning more than $200,000 per year and couples earning more than $250,000 as well as a 3.8 percent surtax on investment income. And one other thing to keep in mind here is, even if Barry gets his way on all of his tax hikes on the wealthy, it still won't make even the slightest dent in our $16.3 Trillion national debt.

And here’s a little question left to be pondered by all of those clamoring for those evil, greedy rich to finally start paying their fair share. Later in his second term, once our ‘Dear Beloved Leader’, has succeeded in blowing through all of this ‘new’ revenue with even more idiotic spending increases, and attempts to again return to this very same well in search of still more revenues, will our illustrious state-controlled media allow Barry get away with once again claiming that the wealthy still aren't paying their "fair share"? And will they permit him to do so without specifying what, exactly, constitutes his idea of fairness? Now, knowing those in the state-controlled media as I think we all do, I think that it can safely be assumed that those in the media will continue to play whatever role they feel they must in order to assist Barry in convincing the American people of any required falsehood.

I think it fair to say that both Warren Buffett, willingly, and Mitt Romney, not so much, were essentially used as a ruse, and quite effectively, to create one of the most enduring myths of our ongoing tax debate: that the rich pay a lower rate than the rest of America. Now while I suppose this can be said to be true, individually, nationally, the tax code is still very broadly progressive. In other words, the more you make, the more taxes you will have to pay as a percentage of your income. According to new data from the IRS, people who make $1 million or more had an average tax rate of 20.4 percent in 2010. Tax filers who earned $30,000 to $50,000 paid an average rate of 4.8 percent, while those who made between $50,000 and $100,000 paid 7.7 percent. Those making under $30,000 had a negative effective rate, meaning they paid no federal income taxes after deductions and credits. One would think that that’s a very fair share.

Put another way, millionaires pay a rate that’s more than four times that of the middle class. However, there is one caveat: Rates go up as income goes up, but only to a point. Once you hit a certain magic number among super-high earners, your tax rates start to fall slightly. According to the IRS, average tax rates increase as income increases, until you get to around $1.5 million in annual income. Once you make $2 million, average tax rates start to decrease. The average tax rate peaks at 25.1 percent for those making between $1.5 million and $2 million. After that it starts to go down, and falls to 20.7 percent for those making $10 million or more. So the millionaires who pay the highest average tax rates in America are those who make between $1.5 million and $2 million. That $2 million could be called the "Top Turning Point" on the income ladder, where rates reverse.

The reasons for this aren’t really all that complicated. Because once you get above $2 million, your share of income from investments increases. Investments are generally taxed at the 15 percent capital-gains rate, compared with the top ordinary-income rate of 35 percent. Those making $10 million or more earned nearly half of their income from capital gains and dividends. Rates don’t fall all that much once you get above $10 million. Even among the top 400 earners in America, whose average income is more than $200 million, the 'average rate' is 18 percent, still more than three times the rate paid by the middle class. Both sides of the current political debate on taxes will no doubt see these data differently. The right will say that the rich already pay more than their fair share, while the left will play politics, pointing to the low rates paid by the wealthy relative to the official tax rates. But the figures show that the more you make, the more you pay.

Which brings us back to what Barry thinks should be one’s "fair share." I think many of us can agree that there is something inherently ‘unfair’ about the fact that half, or nearly half, our population continue to pay absolutely nothing in the way of an income tax, while at the same time demands are made that those who already pay the majority of all taxes paid, pay even more. But such is the basis for Barry’s success at being able to set one half of the country against the other half and thus get re-elected. It’s all propaganda and yet, with the help of our state-controlled media complex, Barry was able to sufficiently convince enough of the American people that the poor in this country have somehow been made that way by those evil ‘rich’ folks, who are the same ones who pay all the taxes. The real reason that most people are poor is because they’re either lazy, unmotivated or have no interest, whatsoever, in doing that which is required to become rich!