Comments on: Taxing the Rich – Will They Bend but Not Break?

By: toltecs

toltecs — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 23:37:39 +0000

With the 2009 tax brackets, a family with a taxable income of $450,000 filing as “married filing jointly” would pay the following:

10% on income up to $16,700 = $1670
15% on income up to $67,900 = $7680
25% on income up to $137,050 = $17,287.50
28% on income up to $208,850 = $20,104
33% on income up to $372,950 = $54,153
35% on income above $372,950 = $26,967.50

That adds up to $127,862. You can verify my calculations with this income tax calculator:

http://www.moneychimp.com/features/tax_brackets.htm

Run these numbers again changing the highest bracket to 39%.

That adds up to $130,944. That is an increase in taxes of $3082.

% increase = 100 x 3082/127,862 = 2.4%

As I said, you don’t know how to calculate income tax.

By: Rick Beagle

Rick Beagle — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 23:29:58 +0000

Once again the people screaming about the tax increase are taken to task over their perceived expertise on the matter – only to be found wanting. Are you familiar with Pavlov’s dog? At what point do you stop reacting to external stimulus and engage your mental capabilities?

Thing’s are not going so well in the U.S. and besides the response described above, the naysayers have provided nothing tangible to help us out of our troubles. Nothing. Nada.

You spend so much time telling us how we are ruining the country, but have yet to provide a single idea that would help us out of the mess we are in.

Peace.
Rick Beagle

By: toltecs

toltecs — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 23:28:06 +0000

You didn’t show anything to refute my numbers. All you have are vague criticisms without showing any calculations. You haven’t answered my question about your 11% number. You simply don’t know how to calculate income taxes.

By: lurker carl

lurker carl — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 22:20:56 +0000

Your math and your words do not correlate. I already described the error twice, that’s enough.

By: toltecs

toltecs — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 22:09:43 +0000

Show me your calculations then and tell me where I made a mistake.

Did you not do exactly what I described in the 2:56pm post?

By: lurker carl

lurker carl — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 21:22:20 +0000

“we are talking about a 4% increase in tax on income over and above about $350,000″

These are your exact words. Tax on income over and above $350K does not describe or include the tax rates on income BELOW $350K. My math and accounting skills are just fine, along with my understanding of the income tax brackets.

I have no claim as to what amount of reduced income will make or break any particular person. Nor does anyone else.

By: toltecs

toltecs — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 19:56:09 +0000

It is not related to my math skills. It is your accounting skills that are lacking. Didn’t you do exactly what I explained in the first paragraph?

0.35 x 450,000 = 157,500

0.39 x 450,000 = 175,500

175,500 – 157,500 = 18,000

100 x (18,000/157,500) = 11.4%

This is not how taxes are calculated. You don’t understand marginal tax rates or tax brackets.

http://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/MarginalTaxRates.html