The folks over at [[Metafilter]] are having a discussion about taxes and apparently how bitter most people are about the fact that some folks have money. I jumped in for a post but I don’t know that it will help – class envy is running pretty rampant. Anyway, my posts are below but you should go check the whole thread.

Oh – and there was some more M. Moore stuff.

posted by soulhuntre at 9:41 PM PST on April 11

Yeah, I have a LOT of sympathy for the wealthy. Can you tell?”

It’s good to see that class envy is alive and well. I would have hoped that most folks would think a little bit more about economic issues than “screw em! I’m poor!” but that’s not going to happen.

I am also a little unsure why it’s ok to take someone’s property just because you don’t perceive them to have “earned” it.

Have you ever given something to a family member? A child? And what if some cop came and took that car you handed down away because they didn’t “earn it” themselves? would that make sense? of course not.

Let’s say I make a million or five. I give it to my children, and then their lives don’t have to suck. Why, exactly, is that a moral problem? Why would that justify someone else with NO CLAIM ont hat wealth taking it away from them?

So rich families tend to get richer – imagine that! Families, working to better their situation and that of future generations. I’m shocked!

Make sure you tax all those evil rich folks into oblivion – then they’ll stop creating wealth and watch the economy collapse.

Many things need massive concentration of wealth to happen, and many of those things are GOOD things. Rich people, rich companies and rich families are the driving force for that.

So you can’t start poor and become rich? Probably not – then again, most people aren’t really equipped to add much value to society as a whole in a business sense so it doesn’t matter much.

But if you ARE good, DO work hard and are above the norm… you absolutely can get stinking rich. And when you do – you can give your kids a head start unless the class envy the Democrats love to spread (you know, those poor little democrat political families) lets some government agency rob you blind.

Me? I like flat taxes. All people, corporations, charities and so on … just flat the whole thing.

posted by soulhuntre at 10:44 PM PST on April 11

“It’s only your money because the rest of us agree that you are entitled to it; if society, as encoded in law, decides that you need to pay up, then you need to pay up.”

In a technical sense? You’re almost right 🙂

Legally? of course your right.

Societies decision of what I own is second only to my ability to use force to keep something if society decides to take it. In the end, power decides ownership.

Usually a society extends its power to cover personal property to avoid everyone having to have a fortress… but that is a convenience.

Funny though how many people will applaud your definition when it means soaking the rich, but would scream bloody murder about “innate rights” if the government decided to take a printing press from an alternative newspaper 🙂

posted by soulhuntre at 12:32 PM PST on April 11

(note: that time seems wrong by about 12 hours)

“What a funny, touching, and important work that is.”

Roger and Me? No, actually the film pissed me off.

So M. Moore shows up at the offices of a huge company with a camera crew, looking like a student filmmaker and trailing a bad attitude and *gasp* doesn’t get in to see the person who runs the company?

And you can base a career on this crap?

*sigh*

“Be yourself. Be an individual. Stand for what is right.”

I agree – and that’s why I supported the war 🙂