Rich people are right to hate taxes and to avoid paying them.
Rich people are right to hate taxes and to avoid paying them. Skyhobo/gettyimages.com

Seattle Times has a story about a Thurston County family who were selected by Trump to stand with him during his "speech about the new federal tax proposal." The family's breadwinner is in the 15 percent bracket, which means he pays around $2,500 in taxes. Trump told this family that the plan "will totally wipe out their tax bill, and they might even get a refund of substantially more than $700.”

Now, let's put aside the fact that Trump is a pathological liar and most certainly has no idea what's in the tax plan or how it will affect regular Americans. Let's also put aside the many studies that show the tax plan will offer no gains (and may even take money away) from those with an income that's less than $50,000.


Do all of this, and the foolishness of the Thurston County mom and pop who accepted the invitation to the White House is still pronounced. And the mom's prattle about giving some of the small savings promised by the pathological lair to the needy must be dismissed as the mutterings a lunatic. Where did these people go to school? How did they become such fools?

Here is the thing: Even if it were true, even if the Thurston County mom and pop did get the money, it's infinitely better, even in the short run, for them to be in a situation where there are no tax cuts for them or the rich. (If taxes for the rich are not cut, but yours are, this is the best deal for you.) If at any moment, a tax cut is offered to you and a rich person, reject it outright. If the rich person is taxed, the return on your $2,500 is that much greater; it is indeed an investment. The logic of this is obvious if the $2,500 is not seen in isolation, in its immediacy to you. What's not concealed from the view of the social is the absurdity of you putting this bit of money in your pocket as a rich person puts the handsome sum of $100,000 or more into their portfolio of stocks.

This is class struggle. Know what you are fighting for.

The rich are right to hate taxes. It is in their short-run interest to keep as much money as they can from the public purse. But if you are in the 15 percent tax bracket, like that Thurston County pop, and are pro-low taxes, it is exactly the same as a madman who walks up and down the street claiming to be the Prince of Wales. A working-class person who supports tax cuts for all is speaking and thinking and dreaming they have the same values and weltanschauung of a millionaire. They have adopted the interests of their masters as their own. They think they are speaking for themselves, but are instead speaking the language of those who are way above them. Stop being so stupid all of the time. You are not rich. You can't afford to hate taxes.