The problem with taxing the rich

[Dugdale_Jukes]

Go ahead and raise taxes on the Rich, it doesn't bother me, instead of filing as an individual, I will file as a private contractor and claim about $11,000 a year, the rest of my possessions are business expenses that are tax deductible, cars, planes, massages, titty bars ............ you name it ................ and claiming only $11,000 qualifies me to receive food stamps.
The true profits are buried in business expenses so that my corporate taxes are kept very low, less than one of the sheeple pay.

That is exactly what Reagan had in mind when he expanded corporate welfare. Good for you.

 

[ScienceRocks]

How about a 21% income tax on anyone making a million dollars or more a year? We could make it illegal to offshore their money to shield from taxes and remove the loop holes. No more 11-15% taxes for the rich. At the same time we could drop the corporate to 27-28% which would help businesses lower their prices or us the people.

What do you think of this?

 

[Dugdale_Jukes]

How about a 21% income tax on anyone making a million dollars or more a year? We could make it illegal to offshore their money to shield from taxes and remove the loop holes. No more 11-15% taxes for the rich. At the same time we could drop the corporate to 27-28% which would help businesses lower their prices or us the people.

What do you think of this?

Far too rational for either party to accept.

 

[RKMBrown]

How about a 21% income tax on anyone making a million dollars or more a year? We could make it illegal to offshore their money to shield from taxes and remove the loop holes. No more 11-15% taxes for the rich. At the same time we could drop the corporate to 27-28% which would help businesses lower their prices or us the people.

What do you think of this?

Far too rational for either party to accept.

You are confusing capital gains taxes with income taxes.

Are you actually saying American Citizens should not be able to invest overseas? Or that if they do they owe us any profits they get from those investments?

WOW Why don't we just slap chains on people when their income goes over 1million? Maybe slap them around a bit, torture their kids till they acquiesce to stop earning so much money.

 

[ScienceRocks]

How about a 21% income tax on anyone making a million dollars or more a year? We could make it illegal to offshore their money to shield from taxes and remove the loop holes. No more 11-15% taxes for the rich. At the same time we could drop the corporate to 27-28% which would help businesses lower their prices or us the people.

What do you think of this?

Far too rational for either party to accept.

You are confusing capital gains taxes with income taxes.

Are you actually saying American Citizens should not be able to invest overseas? Or that if they do they owe us any profits they get from those investments?

WOW Why don't we just slap chains on people when their income goes over 1million? Maybe slap them around a bit, torture their kids till they acquiesce to stop earning so much money.

We should make it harder to do and make sure that they pay at least 21% income taxes. Romney and Obama shouldn't be able to pay 14-17%. Seriously, wtf?

What would you suggest for rich offshoring their wealth?

 

[Dugdale_Jukes]

How about a 21% income tax on anyone making a million dollars or more a year? We could make it illegal to offshore their money to shield from taxes and remove the loop holes. No more 11-15% taxes for the rich. At the same time we could drop the corporate to 27-28% which would help businesses lower their prices or us the people.

What do you think of this?

Far too rational for either party to accept.

You are confusing capital gains taxes with income taxes.

Are you actually saying American Citizens should not be able to invest overseas? Or that if they do they owe us any profits they get from those investments?

WOW Why don't we just slap chains on people when their income goes over 1million? Maybe slap them around a bit, torture their kids till they acquiesce to stop earning so much money.

Not confusing anything. Stating specifically that all income should be taxed the same because the biggest scam in the tax game is the idea that capital gains have been taxed once. No. They haven't. Gains are gains. Gains have not been taxed.

And no one has suggested not allowing US citizens to invest anywhere. In the years that I worked for foreign entities on foreign soil the US government collected income taxes on the differential from local taxes to US taxes. Corporations should pay up as well is my interpretation of the original post by Matthew.

Was there something else?

 

[RKMBrown]

Far too rational for either party to accept.

You are confusing capital gains taxes with income taxes.

Are you actually saying American Citizens should not be able to invest overseas? Or that if they do they owe us any profits they get from those investments?

WOW Why don't we just slap chains on people when their income goes over 1million? Maybe slap them around a bit, torture their kids till they acquiesce to stop earning so much money.

We should make it harder to do and make sure that they pay at least 21% income taxes. Romney and Obama shouldn't be able to pay 14-17%. Seriously, wtf?

What would you suggest for rich offshoring their wealth?

What if a Billionaire decides to not work have no income and make no investments? All he does is spend his money as he sees fit. Will you be ok with him paying ZERO in taxes that year? What if he only takes in a hundred bucks income. Will you be ok with him paying the same income tax rate as anyone else that earns 100bucks?

My solution to the issue of income taxation and capital gains taxation is to replace them with sales taxes as well as additional import and export duties. Well that and gut the fed til it is no bigger than it was say at the start of the clinton administration. Oh and privatize SS/Medicare.

 

[RKMBrown]

Far too rational for either party to accept.

You are confusing capital gains taxes with income taxes.

Are you actually saying American Citizens should not be able to invest overseas? Or that if they do they owe us any profits they get from those investments?

WOW Why don't we just slap chains on people when their income goes over 1million? Maybe slap them around a bit, torture their kids till they acquiesce to stop earning so much money.

Not confusing anything. Stating specifically that all income should be taxed the same because the biggest scam in the tax game is the idea that capital gains have been taxed once. No. They haven't. Gains are gains. Gains have not been taxed.

And no one has suggested not allowing US citizens to invest anywhere. In the years that I worked for foreign entities on foreign soil the US government collected income taxes on the differential from local taxes to US taxes. Corporations should pay up as well is my interpretation of the original post by Matthew.

Was there something else?

Yes, earnings from capital gains and earnings from income are both earnings. However, just because they are both earnings does not mean they are both income. The point being everyone pays the same income tax rates, and everyone pays the same capital gains rates. The problem is the some folks, you included, apparently can't agree that capital gains earnings are not the same as income earnings. Because you folks are incapable of admitting they are different, you feel obliged to thus make up lies about the rich paying lower income tax rates than everyone else. That is just plain wrong. It is a bold faced falsehood. It is not true. Everyone pays the same rates, capital and income, and everyone is subject to the same exemptions and penalties, such as AMT.

 

[Boss]

How about a 21% income tax on anyone making a million dollars or more a year? We could make it illegal to offshore their money to shield from taxes and remove the loop holes. No more 11-15% taxes for the rich. At the same time we could drop the corporate to 27-28% which would help businesses lower their prices or us the people.

What do you think of this?

I am opposed on principle. You are basically admitting there is an arbitrary line in the sand, where people "make too much money" and I reject that concept. I don't care if it's $250k or $1 million, the same general principle applies... as W.C. Fields once said, "We've determined what you are madam, we are now haggling over price!"

There are no "loopholes" ...this is another misnomer perpetrated by the left. It is a buzzword which is designed to make it sound as if some people are cleverly cheating the system, and that is not the case. The so-called "loopholes" they are referencing, are legitimate tax deductions and incentives we enacted, in order to address specific problems. For instance, one of the key "loopholes" the left want to get rid of, is the individual mortgage deduction. This was enacted to encourage home ownership, and to encourage current homeowners to upgrade to a more expensive home. This was done because we weren't selling new homes. Everyone, including the Democrats who endorsed it, though it was a great idea back in the day... so now, this is a bad thing?

The difference between capital gains tax rates and regular earned income tax rates, is significant for a reason as well. Capital investments are vital to the economic growth, without them, companies can't expand and new companies can't start up. There is no magic money fairy, just wealthy people who can make the choice to invest or not to invest. The lower cap gains tax is an incentive for these people to invest, and if you increase it to the same as income tax, they will simply stop making the money available.

You can't make having wealth illegal. Wealth, for all intents and purposes, is property. The 4th Amendment makes it unconstitutional to seize property without due cause. You can tax investment income, but you'll kill investments. Rich people will hide their wealth in their mattresses before they allow you to just come confiscate it. And if they decide to send their wealth to another country, you don't have the authority to levy taxes in Switzerland, so you're shit outta luck there.

 

[edthecynic]

How about a 21% income tax on anyone making a million dollars or more a year? We could make it illegal to offshore their money to shield from taxes and remove the loop holes. No more 11-15% taxes for the rich. At the same time we could drop the corporate to 27-28% which would help businesses lower their prices or us the people.

What do you think of this?

I am opposed on principle. You are basically admitting there is an arbitrary line in the sand, where people "make too much money" and I reject that concept. I don't care if it's $250k or $1 million, the same general principle applies... as W.C. Fields once said, "We've determined what you are madam, we are now haggling over price!"

There are no "loopholes" ...this is another misnomer perpetrated by the left. It is a buzzword which is designed to make it sound as if some people are cleverly cheating the system, and that is not the case. The so-called "loopholes" they are referencing, are legitimate tax deductions and incentives we enacted, in order to address specific problems. For instance, one of the key "loopholes" the left want to get rid of, is the individual mortgage deduction. This was enacted to encourage home ownership, and to encourage current homeowners to upgrade to a more expensive home. This was done because we weren't selling new homes. Everyone, including the Democrats who endorsed it, though it was a great idea back in the day... so now, this is a bad thing?

The difference between capital gains tax rates and regular earned income tax rates, is significant for a reason as well. Capital investments are vital to the economic growth, without them, companies can't expand and new companies can't start up. There is no magic money fairy, just wealthy people who can make the choice to invest or not to invest. The lower cap gains tax is an incentive for these people to invest, and if you increase it to the same as income tax, they will simply stop making the money available.

You can't make having wealth illegal. Wealth, for all intents and purposes, is property. The 4th Amendment makes it unconstitutional to seize property without due cause. You can tax investment income, but you'll kill investments. Rich people will hide their wealth in their mattresses before they allow you to just come confiscate it. And if they decide to send their wealth to another country, you don't have the authority to levy taxes in Switzerland, so you're shit outta luck there.

Talk about your Elitism, Capital Gains Tycoons think they are so special they are ENTITLED to special tax rates!!! Their ENTITLEMENTS should be the first entitlements eliminated before Congress goes after any programs that help the poor.

Wages are even more important to economic growth than capital. An economy needs wage earners to buy goods and services. Wages are like a magic money fairy because when they are spent they can be turned over thus multiplying their power to stimulate an economy. The more a business can turn over their money the less investment they need. Someone can start a small business without any outside invested capital, and as long as they can turn over their stock by selling to wage earners their growth is unlimited. Capital is not as important as the Tycoons would mislead you to believe.

Capital gains already has tax advantages wages don't have which are incentive enough, they don't need a lower rate on top of them. For example, Capital gains grow tax free, like an unlimited IRA, until the gain is "realized." Capital Gains Tycoons are not satisfied with that hugh advantage and are not even satisfied with paying a lower rate on the profit that tax free gain once it is realized. They are lobbying the GOP to make the tax rate on realized gains a big whopping ZERO%. I'm sure even if they got that they still would not be satisfied and next would demand that they get paid to invest.

"Labor is prior to, and independent of, capital. Capital is only the fruit of labor, and could never have existed if labor had not first existed. Labor is the superior of capital, and deserves much the higher consideration."
President Abraham Lincoln, annual message to Congress, December 3, 1861

 

[Boss]

Talk about your Elitism, Capital Gains Tycoons think they are so special they are ENTITLED to special tax rates!!! Their ENTITLEMENTS should be the first entitlements eliminated before Congress goes after any programs that help the poor.

Wages are even more important to economic growth than capital. An economy needs wage earners to buy goods and services. Wages are like a magic money fairy because when they are spent they can be turned over thus multiplying their power to stimulate an economy. The more a business can turn over their money the less investment they need. Someone can start a small business without any outside invested capital, and as long as they can turn over their stock by selling to wage earners their growth is unlimited. Capital is not as important as the Tycoons would mislead you to believe.

Capital gains already has tax advantages wages don't have which are incentive enough, they don't need a lower rate on top of them. For example, Capital gains grow tax free, like an unlimited IRA, until the gain is "realized." Capital Gains Tycoons are not satisfied with that hugh advantage and are not even satisfied with paying a lower rate on the profit that tax free gain once it is realized. They are lobbying the GOP to make the tax rate on realized gains a big whopping ZERO%. I'm sure even if they got that they still would not be satisfied and next would demand that they get paid to invest.

"Labor is prior to, and independent of, capital. Capital is only the fruit of labor, and could never have existed if labor had not first existed. Labor is the superior of capital, and deserves much the higher consideration."
President Abraham Lincoln, annual message to Congress, December 3, 1861

*sigh* No Ed, they don't think they are special, they don't think they are entitled. In fact, they mostly don't give a flying **** what you decide with regard to the rate capital gains are taxed. These people have plenty of wealth to live on, they don't need more wealth. The reason we lowered capital gains tax rates, was to encourage these people to invest... many of them still do not use their wealth to invest. If we jack that rate up the same as earned income, they will simply stop investing. It doesn't matter one way or the other to them, they will be perfectly fine with it, no matter what you do.

Wages ARE important to the economy, but in order to have wages, you first have to create jobs. Well, killing capital investment, kills jobs, it doesn't create them. Before any company can realize the first penny in profits, they must first pay wages and costs of operations... where do they get that money from? Right now, they get it from capital investors, who have the available capital to invest.

As for your Lincoln quote... you do realize this was BEFORE we had unionized labor, minimum wage, 40-hour work weeks, OSHA, employer-paid health care, family leave, and dozens of other protections against exploitation of labor, including outright slavery? Let's TRY to gain a little context here?

 

[BorisTheAnimal]

The basic progressive tax system treats everyone equally as regards to earned income. Pay this much tax on $10K, pay this much tax on $20K, pay this much tax on $400K.

The unfairness comes in with loopholes and treating different types of income differently. People that earn their incomes from investments pay a much lower rate than those that use their bodies to earn income.

If the point of the OP is to declare that every form of income should be treated the same I'll agree.

Well.. I guess you would support subjectively treating someone differently by charging different court costs based on what is being sued for... Or maybe on a subjectively chosen level like IQ???

No dollar earned by any person should be treated or taxed any differently than any other.. THAT is equality in treatment.. not changing levels based on some subjective feeling that someone is having a hard time

And as you know.. I support ridding the system of any loophole, deduction, etc.. and I support taxing ALL income the same no matter the source

Good.

All income up to 50k.......0%
All income between 50k 150k......28%
All income between 150k and 250k......36%
All income between 250k and 1m.......40%
All income between 1m and 10m......50%
All income above 10m.......70%


All income subject to FICA of 3%

Lets do it! Everyone pays the same!

So, LoneLoser, you propose someone making more than 10 million being bent over the table and buttraped for over two thirds of their income?

 

[Boss]

They are lobbying the GOP to make the tax rate on realized gains a big whopping ZERO%.

No they are not. There is no Rich People Lobby. As I said, they don't give a flying **** what you do! Jack the goddamn tax rate to 99% if you want to! See what the hell happens next! These people will simply divert their investments to securities... and if you jack up the tax rate on securities, they'll hide the money in their mattresses. In the end, you won't get your grubby little hands on a penny of it, unless they want you to have it. You're under some kind of fucked up delusion that these people HAVE to invest, and don't have any other option but to pay whatever tax you levy on them. Nothing is further from the truth.

 

[Contumacious]

The problem with taxing the rich

.

There is no problem taxing the rich because

- I am allergic to work
- I like watching daytime TV
-So long as they feed me I won't give a shit about the folks in DC listening to my phone calls
- So long as they feed me I won't give a shit about Benghazi
- I like to count my food stamps while a smoking a joint
.....

 

[Boss]

Good.

All income up to 50k.......0%
All income between 50k 150k......28%
All income between 150k and 250k......36%
All income between 250k and 1m.......40%
All income between 1m and 10m......50%
All income above 10m.......70%


All income subject to FICA of 3%

Lets do it! Everyone pays the same!

I don't get this, are you retarded or did you fail math? 70% is not the same as 28%.

Do you want to know what will happen, if your "plan" ever came to fruition? There would be no more $10m incomes. There would be very few $1-10 million incomes. There would be fewer $250k - $1m incomes. Instead of income compensations, companies would move to benefit packages that did not count as "income" and wouldn't be taxable. Maybe that is a "corporate home" or property? Maybe that's the use of the corporate jet and luxury vacation destination? Maybe it's an unlimited expense account? Maybe it's a security trust? Maybe it's stock in a foreign country, where you are unable to levy tax? In any event, they will find a way to compensate their high-end executives without it being considered "earned income" and you have fucked yourself.

 

[edthecynic]

Talk about your Elitism, Capital Gains Tycoons think they are so special they are ENTITLED to special tax rates!!! Their ENTITLEMENTS should be the first entitlements eliminated before Congress goes after any programs that help the poor.

Wages are even more important to economic growth than capital. An economy needs wage earners to buy goods and services. Wages are like a magic money fairy because when they are spent they can be turned over thus multiplying their power to stimulate an economy. The more a business can turn over their money the less investment they need. Someone can start a small business without any outside invested capital, and as long as they can turn over their stock by selling to wage earners their growth is unlimited. Capital is not as important as the Tycoons would mislead you to believe.

Capital gains already has tax advantages wages don't have which are incentive enough, they don't need a lower rate on top of them. For example, Capital gains grow tax free, like an unlimited IRA, until the gain is "realized." Capital Gains Tycoons are not satisfied with that hugh advantage and are not even satisfied with paying a lower rate on the profit that tax free gain once it is realized. They are lobbying the GOP to make the tax rate on realized gains a big whopping ZERO%. I'm sure even if they got that they still would not be satisfied and next would demand that they get paid to invest.

"Labor is prior to, and independent of, capital. Capital is only the fruit of labor, and could never have existed if labor had not first existed. Labor is the superior of capital, and deserves much the higher consideration."
President Abraham Lincoln, annual message to Congress, December 3, 1861

*sigh* No Ed, they don't think they are special, they don't think they are entitled. In fact, they mostly don't give a flying **** what you decide with regard to the rate capital gains are taxed. These people have plenty of wealth to live on, they don't need more wealth. The reason we lowered capital gains tax rates, was to encourage these people to invest... many of them still do not use their wealth to invest. If we jack that rate up the same as earned income, they will simply stop investing. It doesn't matter one way or the other to them, they will be perfectly fine with it, no matter what you do.

Wages ARE important to the economy, but in order to have wages, you first have to create jobs. Well, killing capital investment, kills jobs, it doesn't create them. Before any company can realize the first penny in profits, they must first pay wages and costs of operations... where do they get that money from? Right now, they get it from capital investors, who have the available capital to invest.

As for your Lincoln quote... you do realize this was BEFORE we had unionized labor, minimum wage, 40-hour work weeks, OSHA, employer-paid health care, family leave, and dozens of other protections against exploitation of labor, including outright slavery? Let's TRY to gain a little context here?

Except the wealthy seek more wealth because wealth is POWER and no matter how well they live, they never have enough power. So if we jack their rate they will still invest because they will always want more power.

And your diversions have nothing to do with the Lincoln quote which stands on its own context.

 

[edthecynic]

They are lobbying the GOP to make the tax rate on realized gains a big whopping ZERO%.

No they are not. There is no Rich People Lobby. As I said, they don't give a flying **** what you do! Jack the goddamn tax rate to 99% if you want to! See what the hell happens next! These people will simply divert their investments to securities... and if you jack up the tax rate on securities, they'll hide the money in their mattresses. In the end, you won't get your grubby little hands on a penny of it, unless they want you to have it. You're under some kind of fucked up delusion that these people HAVE to invest, and don't have any other option but to pay whatever tax you levy on them. Nothing is further from the truth.

What a stupid statement. The wealthy have plenty of lobbyists, just because they don't call them a "Rich People Lobby" does not mean the wealthy have no lobbyists. And if you remember Gingrich proposed a 0% capital gains rate during the last campaign.

 

[Boss]

Talk about your Elitism, Capital Gains Tycoons think they are so special they are ENTITLED to special tax rates!!! Their ENTITLEMENTS should be the first entitlements eliminated before Congress goes after any programs that help the poor.

Wages are even more important to economic growth than capital. An economy needs wage earners to buy goods and services. Wages are like a magic money fairy because when they are spent they can be turned over thus multiplying their power to stimulate an economy. The more a business can turn over their money the less investment they need. Someone can start a small business without any outside invested capital, and as long as they can turn over their stock by selling to wage earners their growth is unlimited. Capital is not as important as the Tycoons would mislead you to believe.

Capital gains already has tax advantages wages don't have which are incentive enough, they don't need a lower rate on top of them. For example, Capital gains grow tax free, like an unlimited IRA, until the gain is "realized." Capital Gains Tycoons are not satisfied with that hugh advantage and are not even satisfied with paying a lower rate on the profit that tax free gain once it is realized. They are lobbying the GOP to make the tax rate on realized gains a big whopping ZERO%. I'm sure even if they got that they still would not be satisfied and next would demand that they get paid to invest.

"Labor is prior to, and independent of, capital. Capital is only the fruit of labor, and could never have existed if labor had not first existed. Labor is the superior of capital, and deserves much the higher consideration."
President Abraham Lincoln, annual message to Congress, December 3, 1861

*sigh* No Ed, they don't think they are special, they don't think they are entitled. In fact, they mostly don't give a flying **** what you decide with regard to the rate capital gains are taxed. These people have plenty of wealth to live on, they don't need more wealth. The reason we lowered capital gains tax rates, was to encourage these people to invest... many of them still do not use their wealth to invest. If we jack that rate up the same as earned income, they will simply stop investing. It doesn't matter one way or the other to them, they will be perfectly fine with it, no matter what you do.

Wages ARE important to the economy, but in order to have wages, you first have to create jobs. Well, killing capital investment, kills jobs, it doesn't create them. Before any company can realize the first penny in profits, they must first pay wages and costs of operations... where do they get that money from? Right now, they get it from capital investors, who have the available capital to invest.

As for your Lincoln quote... you do realize this was BEFORE we had unionized labor, minimum wage, 40-hour work weeks, OSHA, employer-paid health care, family leave, and dozens of other protections against exploitation of labor, including outright slavery? Let's TRY to gain a little context here?

Except the wealthy seek more wealth because wealth is POWER and no matter how well they live, they never have enough power. So if we jack their rate they will still invest because they will always want more power.

And your diversions have nothing to do with the Lincoln quote which stands on its own context.

The Lincoln quote is out of context for the times. You are attempting to use it to make a statement about today when it was intended for yesterday, when it was said. It does not "stand on it's own context" because labor and capitalism have a completely different relationship today.

No, all rich people are not power-hungry megalomaniacs. Besides, if you raise their taxes, they aren't making as much money and there are other options to make more money with less risk, and without your ability to tax their profits. Rich people are smarter than you, Ed. They will always be two steps ahead of whatever you do.

 

[Boss]

They are lobbying the GOP to make the tax rate on realized gains a big whopping ZERO%.

No they are not. There is no Rich People Lobby. As I said, they don't give a flying **** what you do! Jack the goddamn tax rate to 99% if you want to! See what the hell happens next! These people will simply divert their investments to securities... and if you jack up the tax rate on securities, they'll hide the money in their mattresses. In the end, you won't get your grubby little hands on a penny of it, unless they want you to have it. You're under some kind of fucked up delusion that these people HAVE to invest, and don't have any other option but to pay whatever tax you levy on them. Nothing is further from the truth.

What a stupid statement. The wealthy have plenty of lobbyists, just because they don't call them a "Rich People Lobby" does not mean the wealthy have no lobbyists. And if you remember Gingrich proposed a 0% capital gains rate during the last campaign.

Rich people have no lobbyists, which is why you didn't name any. Yes, Gingrich (like Reagan) suggested 0% cap gains tax, the same as I have suggested... we are not paid by rich people to suggest this. We suggest it because we believe it would encourage more capital investment, which would create new jobs for out-of-work Americans.

 

[edthecynic]

*sigh* No Ed, they don't think they are special, they don't think they are entitled. In fact, they mostly don't give a flying **** what you decide with regard to the rate capital gains are taxed. These people have plenty of wealth to live on, they don't need more wealth. The reason we lowered capital gains tax rates, was to encourage these people to invest... many of them still do not use their wealth to invest. If we jack that rate up the same as earned income, they will simply stop investing. It doesn't matter one way or the other to them, they will be perfectly fine with it, no matter what you do.

Wages ARE important to the economy, but in order to have wages, you first have to create jobs. Well, killing capital investment, kills jobs, it doesn't create them. Before any company can realize the first penny in profits, they must first pay wages and costs of operations... where do they get that money from? Right now, they get it from capital investors, who have the available capital to invest.

As for your Lincoln quote... you do realize this was BEFORE we had unionized labor, minimum wage, 40-hour work weeks, OSHA, employer-paid health care, family leave, and dozens of other protections against exploitation of labor, including outright slavery? Let's TRY to gain a little context here?

Except the wealthy seek more wealth because wealth is POWER and no matter how well they live, they never have enough power. So if we jack their rate they will still invest because they will always want more power.

And your diversions have nothing to do with the Lincoln quote which stands on its own context.

The Lincoln quote is out of context for the times. You are attempting to use it to make a statement about today when it was intended for yesterday, when it was said. It does not "stand on it's own context" because labor and capitalism have a completely different relationship today.

No, all rich people are not power-hungry megalomaniacs. Besides, if you raise their taxes, they aren't making as much money and there are other options to make more money with less risk, and without your ability to tax their profits. Rich people are smarter than you, Ed. They will always be two steps ahead of whatever you do.

I'm smart enough to know that just repeating your bullshit does not make it any less bullshit. The Lincoln quote is timeless and just as apt today as when he first said it.

"Labor is the United States. The men and women, who with their minds, their hearts and hands, create the wealth that is shared in this country—they are America."
President Dwight D. Eisenhower