RE: Financing of Social Security-Progressive or Class Rigidifying?

[Michael Jones <powderfinger99@yahoo.com>]

<<<
I am a believer in progressive taxation. And, supposedly, the
benefit structure of Social Security is progressive by giving a
greater wage replacement to those who earned less during their
working lives.
>>>

I do not believe in progrssive taxation. Progressive taxation
does not tax the "wealthy". It taxes people TRYING to become
wealthy. People who are truely wealthy do not realize a large
portion of their net worth in income. You can tax income to
death without impacting the wealthy.

<<<
What is weird about this aspect of Social Security is this. It puts
the greatest tax burden of supporting the retirement benefits of
those at the lower levels of earnings on those who are only middle
class themselves, while leaving high wage earners and those with
other types of income without any tax responsibility for these
lower earners. In short, it is progressive only within the middle
class.
>>>

This is true. Higher taxes cause middle class taxpayers to take
the burden. All in the name of taxing the "wealthy".

<<<
I have argued before that Social Security's high payroll tax is a
means by which America's class structure will become rigidified
and the gap between rich and poor has been widened. Here again we
see how Social Security works to accomplish this end. Those who
reach the higher salary brackets - on the verge of moving up the
economic ladder so to speak - are hit with a tax not borne by those
with greater incomes and for which they will not receive a
corresponding, equitable return.
>>>

So, it is in fact the emerging middle class who are shouldering the
burden. Does this surprise you?

It is a fallacy to equate income with wealth. Taxing people with
high incomes is not the same thing as taxing wealthy people. This
is what I find immoral about the whole system. It essentially
prevents people from becoming wealthy.

Our friends in the Democratic party and the labor unions believe
that we should further weight the burden of the system on
higher income earners in the name of "fairness". Those of us
on the reform side don't want to punish people for earning
high incomes, rather, we want everyone to join the ranks of
wealth builders. And perhaps even become wealthy some day, too.
The best way to accomplish this is to enable everyone, from the
lowest wage job, to the highest wage job, to build wealth.

It's a choice between punishing successful people vs. enabling
everyone to succeed.

Michael