|
|
A story that should’ve made more than just momentary news concerned a leak that exposed how little America’s mega rich paid in income tax over the past decade.
The leak was detailed in an extensive piece by Pulitizer winning ProPublica. Our own 15 June 2021 Trends Journal article “BILLIONAIRE TAX SCOFFLAWS PLOW SAVINGS INTO WEBS OF CONTROL,” focused on the uncovered angle of how billionaires have used their tax savings to fund globalist organizations that siphon democratic powers away from average voters.
Obviously, elites in control of influential media, Like Jeff Bezos, Michael Bloomberg and George Soros were effective in quashing the story, or even shifting focus to a DOJ investigation of the leaker.
But some are still dissecting the unfairness and pernicious effects of the failure to reign in the abuses of power that the tax evasion illuminates.
Charles Hugh Smith, sometime guitarist and author of the financial blog Oftwominds recently offered his thoughts about how the uber wealthy get away it:
“Here’s the trick billionaires use to evade taxes. There are countless ways for the super-wealthy to evade taxes–funnel earnings through an Irish post office box, buy a tax break in Washington DC, slide the money into one of dozens of global tax havens, and so on.
“But a simple one is to report no income and live large off borrowed money. As the billions of dollars in capital gains pile up as the billionaire’s stock holdings soar (thanks, Federal Reserve, for the free trillions; awful swell of you to give us all that free money), there’s no income generated until the billionaire sells some shares. No sale, no income. Just pay yourself $1 a year in salary, borrow against your billions at super-low rates of interest, and voila, you’re tax-free while you build your super-yacht, buy your private island, and so on.”
Smith also had some suggestions on how to make mega billionaires pay up:
“Just as a thought experiment, suppose the first $50,000 in earnings for everyone were tax-free, and a 40% tax rate was collected on all income above $1 million, both earned and unearned (capital gains), not when the gains were realized in a sale but at the end of every tax year, whether the shares that rose in value were sold or not.
“So Billionaire Space Tourist reaped $10 billion in capital gains from the appreciation of stocks held, then the Billionaire pays 40% of those gains: $4 billion. There is a way to not pay any taxes on capital gains–have your portfolio lose value. No gains, no taxes. And to close all the loopholes, the tax rate is on all assets and income connected in any way, shape or form with the U.S. First they pay the U.S. taxes, then if they want to pay other nations’ taxes as well, be my guest. But the 40% is due and payable regardless of any other conditions.”
Smith’s extended article on the subject makes excellent reading.