5 ms·

I agree the title is click baity, but the ultra wealthy do pay a lower effective tax rate than me, and I'm probably in the top 10% of income percentile. But th

by danans 7y ago

I agree the title is click baity, but the ultra wealthy do pay a lower effective tax rate than me, and I'm probably in the top 10% of income percentile. But the observations of the article itself check out. The tax system has gotten radically less progressive over the last 50 years. The argument is over whether or not it should be made more or less progressive given current realities. People can differ in their opinions on that, but the historical trend is clear as day.

refurb 7y ago
It’s gotten less progressive? 2nd graph here [1] shows the top 1% has steady increased their share of all taxes since 1986. I have no idea what it looks like before 1986. [1]https://taxfoundation.org/top-1-percent-tax-rate/ https://taxfoundation.org/top-1-percent-tax-rate/
- danans 7y ago
  You are switching stats again, and I can't tell whether you're doing it on purpose, or are unaware that you are doing it. The stat under discussion in the article is not "share of all taxes", it's effective individual income tax rate by income percentile. The latter has definitely become less progressive over time, as the article makes clear with data. If "share of all taxes" since taxes is a statistic you think is illustrative of something relevant, notice that since 1980, real family income for the top 5% has dramatically outpaced the median real family income, so it only makes sense that their "share of all taxes" would go up: https://www.cbpp.org/income-gains-widely-shared-in-early-postwar-decades-but-not-since-then-2 https://www.cbpp.org/income-gains-widely-shared-in-early-pos...
- ranie93 7y ago
  I'd look for other sources to back your claims-- not just the tax foundation https://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2017/11/11/the-tax-foundation-has-some-explaining-to-do https://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2017/11/11/the-tax-foundat... https://economistsview.typepad.com/economistsview/2008/08/the-greek-menac.html https://economistsview.typepad.com/economistsview/2008/08/th... https://www.cbpp.org/research/federal-tax/tax-foundation-figures-do-not-represent-typical-households-tax-burdens-2 https://www.cbpp.org/research/federal-tax/tax-foundation-fig...
- mcv 7y ago
  The top 1% have also dramatically increased their share of income since 1986, while other incomes have stagnated. The increase in tax paid is entirely due to that larger income, as the effective tax rate they pay has gone down, sometimes even lower than what high middle class pays.

by danans 7y ago

refurb 7y ago

It’s gotten less progressive? 2nd graph here [1] shows the top 1% has steady increased their share of all taxes since 1986. I have no idea what it looks like before 1986. [1]https://taxfoundation.org/top-1-percent-tax-rate/ https://taxfoundation.org/top-1-percent-tax-rate/

danans 7y ago
You are switching stats again, and I can't tell whether you're doing it on purpose, or are unaware that you are doing it. The stat under discussion in the article is not "share of all taxes", it's effective individual income tax rate by income percentile. The latter has definitely become less progressive over time, as the article makes clear with data. If "share of all taxes" since taxes is a statistic you think is illustrative of something relevant, notice that since 1980, real family income for the top 5% has dramatically outpaced the median real family income, so it only makes sense that their "share of all taxes" would go up: https://www.cbpp.org/income-gains-widely-shared-in-early-postwar-decades-but-not-since-then-2 https://www.cbpp.org/income-gains-widely-shared-in-early-pos...
ranie93 7y ago
I'd look for other sources to back your claims-- not just the tax foundation https://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2017/11/11/the-tax-foundation-has-some-explaining-to-do https://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2017/11/11/the-tax-foundat... https://economistsview.typepad.com/economistsview/2008/08/the-greek-menac.html https://economistsview.typepad.com/economistsview/2008/08/th... https://www.cbpp.org/research/federal-tax/tax-foundation-figures-do-not-represent-typical-households-tax-burdens-2 https://www.cbpp.org/research/federal-tax/tax-foundation-fig...
mcv 7y ago
The top 1% have also dramatically increased their share of income since 1986, while other incomes have stagnated. The increase in tax paid is entirely due to that larger income, as the effective tax rate they pay has gone down, sometimes even lower than what high middle class pays.