Imagine playing God and taking the rain before it falls and putting it in the lakes and oceans without it ever having to fall. What would happen? Well simply put, the rain that didn’t fall on the mountains, hills, and plains would not feed the plants and soil or fill the streams or rivers on their way to the lakes and oceans. All the life, both plant and animal, living upon the mountains, hills, and plains or near the streams and rivers would starve. Does this appeal to you? It does to the Democrats.
Rather than allow money to flow freely in our economy, they wish to take from “the top” and deliver it directly to “the bottom”.
Let me use John Kerry’s infamous yacht as an example. He paid about 15 million dollars for the construction of the yacht. (He unfortunately chose to have it built in New Zealand rather than the US, but that is for another blog.) Let’s think about how the money was spent.
He probably began with a naval architect to design his yacht. It may have been an individual or a team of white collar, college educated persons who performed this task. After deciding on a hull and layout, construction would have begun. The shipbuilder would have employed a team of craftsmen from fiberglass layers and gel coat applicators, to woodworkers, mechanics, and electricians. At some point interior designers would have been consulted to design the interior, choose a design style for each cabin and the salon, and probably to help obtain the right pieces to fulfill their vision. Teak from the Indonesian forests will have been shipped in. Various textiles will also be purchased for the construction.
After construction is complete, the Yacht must be transported. It may be crewed or transported on a larger ship designed to transport other ships.
When it reaches its final destination, the dock master and his crew at the marina take care of the vessel. If docked at a private dock, a crew lives on the yacht, doing daily maintenance and preparing it for events and trips.
Now lets review how the money traveled en route to this creation of a “toy for the rich.”
The construction of this yacht directly employed naval architects, fiberglass workers, gel coaters, painters, wood workers, manufacturers, electricians, interior designers, and boat transporters.
These people in turn employed fiberglass manufacturers and suppliers, gel coat manufacturers and suppliers, electrical fixture and parts manufacturers and suppliers, engine manufacturers and suppliers, lumber jacks and their suppliers. Of course transportation of each of these items employed others. Once the boat was docked at its final destination, a full time crew or marina employees were gainfully employed in its care—as in permanent full time employment.
Countless others are in turn patronized by the people receiving paychecks as a result of this yacht, and it goes on and on…
The government receives a piece of each transaction either as a sales tax, payroll tax, import tax, etc… and uses this money to provide goods and services to “the poor.” What happens to the middle class when the government takes the capital that would employ them?
This is what Democrats don’t understand about why taxing “the rich” is not smart economically. Luxury taxes or death taxes or any tax aimed at “the rich” ultimately hurt the middle/working class—who need the rich to spend money to purchase their services or products.