$1.5 billion in estimated revenue: A look at the Massachusetts 'millionaire's tax' first year taxing the rich

return2ozma@lemmy.world to News@lemmy.world – 667 points –
$1.5 billion in estimated revenue: A look at the Mass. 'millionaire's tax' first year
wbur.org
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What, the people who buy elections are fleeing? Sign me up for that.

I mean, an eroding tax base is a problem. I just think the solution is to drag them kicking and screaming to pay back into the system that enabled them to become so stinking rich rather than chasing them off/eating them. The Guillotine of the first French Republic sure did feel good until the reign of terror rolled in.

Murder is always fun until you’re the one getting murdered. Doesn’t apparently sour you on the idea of murder, though.

Eat the rich and become what you despise. No thanks. I’m happy to look for that third way

If you took my comment as an endorsement of how the First republic did things, it you read it wrong.

Wow, yeah, that was a bad read lol. It's generally received wisdom for global economics that tax disincentives push people to a point, but most of 'em will actually pay taxes if the alternative is hanging out in Bermuda forever. Nationwide rather than statewide is gonna be good enough for most

Tl;Dr basically agree

but most of 'em will actually pay taxes if the alternative is hanging out in Bermuda forever.

What if the alternative is their money hanging out in Bermuda forever while they enjoy a life of tax-reduced luxury in the countries they're dodging taxes from?

Then you have to continually fight a lot of battles about your money and it gets complicated but sure that's definitely a thing people also do and there are no magic bullets and all options for everything are a bit sucky - but having some of these mega-high-earners pay a bit more tax is still better than doing nothing because you're worried they'll take the money away, and the wider the policy of fair graduated tax is applied, the better it works

Oh, my point is more that "These cretins only pay taxes when there are teeth behind enforcement" rather than "We shouldn't tax them more because they might leave"

Make the IRS feared again

I didn’t take it that way— mine was a poorly worded agreement with you.

Technically the people who buy elections via Campaign Funding and Political Endorsement are almost never actually in the state they're buying the elections of. Reminds me of The Southern Strategy, when Republicans invested heavily in the south to stoke the flames after LBJ signed the Civil Rights Act.