re: Seattle to tax the wealthy

Spokane area, then?

Well there is a problem where the wealthy are accumulating more money at a terrifying pace and a lot of that money isn't being circulated back into the system. It's a very troubling sign when the top 1 percent of people have more wealth than the bottom 90 percent. I know I sound like a Bernie billboard right now, but this is a problem that needs to be solved because America has turned into an oligarchy.

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Who would want to buy a home in an extra 2.5% income tax neighborhood?

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give me a nice enough house and ill pay an extra can of coke per $50 to live there

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I know I sound like a Bernie billboard right now, but this is a problem that needs to be solved because America has turned into an oligarchy.

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You can't have an oligarchy without a strong government to set the conditions for one. Less government and regulation and taxes are the answer, not more.

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It's a very troubling sign when the top 1 percent of people have more wealth than the bottom 90 percent. I know I sound like a Bernie billboard right now, but this is a problem that needs to be solved because America has turned into an oligarchy.

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I agree. What is worse is how so many people white knight over 1 percenters who do not care about them or the country's well being.

The excuses people make fall are as follows

1. poor people are lazy

2. poor people who do work don't work hard enough


To be fair, there are poor people who try to take advantage of the system and do not put in enough effort. But as someone who started off poor in childhood and working my way up, I have noticed flaws in all these arguments.

1. There are people working 2 to 3 jobs struggling to make ends meet. They can barely take care of themselves much less kids. And even if they don't have kids, its a struggle to just pay the bills. Even for educated people, decent paying ($45K year) jobs are getting harder to come across.

And by contrast, not all rich people are hard-workers. Some are and that is to be respected. But gaining money via inheritance is not exactly my definition of hard-work. You deserve whatever your family leaves you, but to pass inheritance off as being merit based is deceiving.

2. Working hard enough to get a position depends just as much on the company/industry you are working as it does your own efforts. The idea that every business operates in a matter benefitting employees is a pipe dream. Nepotism may be very prevalent in some places. Some lay off employees at higher rates than others.

Have you idiots who are in favor of this proposal read it?

All residents would be required to report their income to a local newly created "IRS-style" bureaucracy. The new IRS-style agency will cost between $20 and $40 million a year. I'm sure you tax returns and confidential information will be well protected from the local government agency. I'm sure they won't leak someone's tax returns in order to push a political agenda.

The good news is that Seattle's budget has increased 35% over the last 4 years (8% per year).

Hello Texas and Florida you will soon have new residents arriving who are wealthy!

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An undeniable fact right now though you have to be a part of the 2 dominating political parties and either have a huge amount of wealth or get funding from very wealthy people to have any chance in politics.

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not in national races... Bernie damn near became president $27 at a time

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Explain how this occurs

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You own a company in the US, but you decide you want to invest in a foreign country's natural resources.

You buy custom made foreign homes, cars, etc.

Hiring citizens of another country so that you can outsource the production.

Nothing wrong with these things, but the money is being used to bolster another country's economy, not our own.

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Why

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I guess if it doesn't bother you, its not your problem. It does prove that the system is completely rigged.

I really think the conservative notion that everyone who is rich earned it via hard-work is extremely naïve. The fact is, some people simply got lucky. They had a business venture that happened to be at the right place/right time. Or some people simply inherited money and built off of it.

I am not saying that these people should not enjoy their wealth. But I am saying there is complete ignorance of the social/economic factors and the reality of capitalism in that there simply are not always a means for someone to build a better life.

As someone else just posted, the middle class is carrying the strain of all these government programs since the rich can simply reallocate their assets.

The middle class is the oil that keeps society flowing smoothly.

Good