Buffet: Rich Should Pay Higher Taxes

And Warren Buffet continues to show why he is an excellent human being. *applauds*

Now if he can only convince the rest of the world's millionaires/billionaires to be as generous.

WTF are you posting this now for? I already posted all this stuff, only to be assured by every Joe the Plumber on his forum that it would never work because the rich will just move their money to other jurisdictions.

But if you think Buffet is alone:







That's Dave as in Cameron.

Dude's obviously a Commie!

I'd be impressed if they just paid what they owed instead of all the hiding and loophole nonsense.

That's actually Buffet's point - he pays a lower tax rate than his receptionist because of various tax dodges available to him.

He paid 19% of taxes while making billions while people earning a 'fair' income had higher rates.

Maybe the problem is more HOW they tax. The taxation system in the States looks fucked up.

Taxing the rich more wont fix the big problem, all the good jobs are being outsourced. Doesn't matter how much you tax the population if more money is leaving the economy than coming in.

If Buffet wants to help he can donate billions of his money a year to schools and roads etc.

That's actually Buffet's point - he pays a lower tax rate than his receptionist because of various tax dodges available to him.

I know, he's been talking about this for a while now. IMHO he should write an update to his book.

That's actually Buffet's point - he pays a lower tax rate than his receptionist because of various tax dodges available to him.

I know, he's been talking about this for a while now. IMHO he should write an update to his book.

I don't really get it tho. He paid tax on a lot more money than the secretary - so if the income is higher, shouldn't the tax rate he paid on it be higher too? I understand having various tax dodges that reduce net income, but not how you pay a lower rate on higher earnings.

Through the incentives passed to those in a particular tax bracket I presume. How exactly the US system works, I don't know enough to say.

Every tax system is at least nominally progressive - ie the rate goes up on higher incomes. So it really makes no sense that he paid a lower rate on much higher income than his secretary. Maybe his income was capital gains and there's a special, lower, tax rate on that.

My guess would be that his higher income/wealth level allows him the opportunity to take advantage of things most people can't afford.

For example, every Canadian is entitled to put $5000 each year into a TFSA, but how many people can afford to do that every year? Certainly those earning 6 figures probably can, but a single mom with a kid or two making $40,000 a year can't. Same goes for RRSPs. Canadians are allowed to bank 18% of their income (to a maximum of $20,000 or something) each year. But how many do that? most people put in a $1000 or two just before they send in their taxes to get a bigger return and that's all.

I do know that mortgage interest in the US is a write-off on your taxes, so if Buffet has a huge house with big mortgage payments (I don't know but I doubt it given his own financial acumen), while his secretary has a small house with smaller payments, then right there he would get a larger tax break than she would.