Wealthy Europeans back Warren Buffett's call for higher taxes on the rich

pMSNBC ^ | 8/30/11 | Staff

[AT7Saluki]

Wealthy people across Europe are following in billionaire Warren Buffett's footsteps by calling for higher taxes on the rich.

In Germany, a group of 50 people, called "The Wealthy for a Capital Levy," have urged Chancellor Angela Merkel to make people like them pay more in taxes and "stop the gap between rich and poor getting even bigger," The Guardian newspaper reported Tuesday.

In France, 16 of the country's wealthiest people, including billionaire L'Oreal heiress Lilliane Bettencourt and oil company Total's chief executive Christophe de Margerie signed a petition calling for wealthy people to make a "special contribution" to the government's finances.

[seowulf]

I have to wonder, REALLY wonder what these elitists would say or do if instead of being taxed on ‘reportable’ income they were taxed on ‘total wealth’.

That was my thought exactly. Why go socialist when you can go all out communist?

After all, who needs a billion dollars. I'm sure they could get by on a hundred million.

[Tzimisce]

If he wants to pay more in taxes, he could always fire his battery of accountants.

[griswold3]

Someone should do an expose on the tax collection regime in Germany. No one escapes!
The really rich live in Switzerland. Wonder why?

Warren Buffet is the judas goat for the collectivists. Wonder what he’s been promised?

[USCG SimTech]

The wealthy already have their full bank accounts that can no longer be taxed as income. So of course those CURRENTLY RICH want higher taxes on those gaining income toward becoming rich. They want to keep the “little people” and riff-raff out of their neighborhoods. No middle class come-up-in’s invited to the riches parties.

[Waco]

Ted TurNer, J.Fonda, Nancy Peelosi, Mike Moore, are silent on this. Pee on you peons.

[Waco]

I once heard Paul Harvey say that the average poor person in the U.S. had a higher standard of living than the average European. Nothing has changed.

[Soul of the South]

The answer for these wealthy hypocrites is a wealth tax, not higher marginal tax rates. Let’s apply the current highest marginal income tax rate to their net worth every year.

Per Forbes, the friend of the masses Mr. Buffet, has a net worth of $45 billion in 2011. The top federal income tax bracket is 35%. Let Mr. Buffett pay 35% on his $45 billion or $15.75 billion. After all, it would only be “fair” from the progressive perspective. The next year he can pay 35% on his remaining $29.25 billion. After a few years he can become a common man!

High marginal income tax rates only serve to raise the bar on hard workers trying to accumulate wealth resulting in fewer new wealthy people and preserving the economic power of the existing wealthy. Start taxing the existing wealthy on their net worth and you’ll hear Mr. Buffett, Mr. Gates, the Kennedy heirs, Mr. and Mrs. Kerry, Miss Winfrey, the Clintons, and even King Barack sing a different tune.