In the US, the top 10% pay about half of all taxes, and also have about half of all income. How is that disproportionate and why should we be thankful for people just for pulling their own weight?
> the top 10% pay about half of all taxes ... How is that disproportionate ... ?
I'm not trying to be nasty here, but something in your question is off. My answer is obvious - 10% handling 50% of the taxes implies the 10% are contributing 9 times as much as everyone else since (50 / 10) is 9x (50 / 90).
> why should we be thankful for people just for pulling their own weight?
If contributing 9x as much as everyone else is pulling their own weight, what exactly are we supposed to think about the average person? I happen to think the average person is pulling their own weight, and that the 10% are probably pulling 8 other people along.
I'm going to guess you are struggling to put your opinion into words - maybe you think that because paying taxes is involuntary it should be taken for granted.
That is exactly the type of attitude that makes me say taxpayers deserve a bit more recognition - firstly a group of people have been identified as highly productive, secondly they have been made to contribute to broader society. So far so good, they can complain a lot about that state of affairs and get ignored if they want.
However to then turn around and say they are 'only' pulling their weight and should be taken for granted is actually mean spirited. Even if you think the rich should be paying more tax than they are now, they still deserve recognition for being the primary dynamo behind everything the government does. To say nothing of the average taxpayer who also deserves a bit of respect for making a contribution. It isn't that easy to be in a position to pay taxes, it takes hard work.
