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Know what bugged me the entire time through all of this? The big money guys on the big money shows kept referring to themselves as "the investor class." As if
by MisterBastahrd 6y ago
Know what bugged me the entire time through all of this?
The big money guys on the big money shows kept referring to themselves as "the investor class."
As if by the very nature of their jobs, they were set aside above and apart from those of us who have to earn our livings by doing useful things. I'd love to know how much of the brainpower in the US is set aside for the purpose of doing nothing more than extracting wealth from the markets.
Additionally, I've long held the opinion that if your primary method of earning a living is by extracting wealth from the market, then your "capital gains" are just a fancy way of earning a living and you should be taxed at the exact same rate that everyone else is. You don't deserve to pay half the taxes just because your earnings are derived from stocks.
- Animats 6y agoAnd maybe it's time to have a tax on financial transactions. The EU is looking at that again. It's called a "Tobin tax". Not much, a fraction of a percent, but on every trade.
- smabie 6y agoA fraction of a percent is yuuuge. Entire categories of liquidity providers can be wiped out with taxes on trades as "low" as 0.05% Not sure what people have against trading or why I should be taxed on buying or selling shares, but the government likes to capture money and spend it on weapons, so I suppose it isn't surprising the idea is being floated.
- Bakary 6y agoThe possibility of getting wealthy this way is only available because there is a stable society to skim off of, and that is in turn the result of the collective work of millions. Trading does not create wealth but shifts it around, so why shouldn't it be taxed?
- goatinaboat 6y agoAnd maybe it's time to have a tax on financial transactions. The EU is looking at that again. It's called a "Tobin tax" I don’t mean to sound harsh but you are financially illiterate if you don’t know this already exists. Have a read of https://www.gov.uk/tax-buy-shares https://www.gov.uk/tax-buy-shares By the way Tobin no longer advocates for a Tobin tax.
- perryizgr8 6y agoNo thanks. Let's talk about removing taxes, not adding more.
- imtringued 6y agoJust increase capital gains and decrease dividends taxes. If the central bank is flooding the market with money then you want people to make less money off of stock gains and more from actual income. Capital gains can be driven by irrational investors like squeezed short sellers. Short sellers promised to buy even if the current price is stupid. High capital gains taxes would discourage this type of trading. Long term investments can still make lots of money from dividends.
- goatinaboat 6y agoThe big money guys on the big money shows kept referring to themselves as "the investor class." As if by the very nature of their jobs, they were set aside above and apart from those of us who have to earn our livings by doing useful things Hate to say it but that was literally exactly what Marx was talking about when he referred to “capitalists” as a class.