Money math . . .

IT JUST KEEPS GETTING BETTER: according to Robert Lenzner at FORBES, "The Top 0.1% Of The Nation Earn Half Of All Capital Gains". YIKES! This means that it's not the top 1%, it's the top thousandth, that 1/1000 of some 330 million people are staggeringly wealthy.

The top 0.1%-- about 315,000 individuals out of 315 million-- are making about half of all capital gains on the sale of shares or property after 1 year; and these capital gains make up 60% of the income made by the Forbes 400.

It's crystal clear that the Bush tax reduction on capital gains and dividend income in 2003 was the cutting edge policy that has created the immense increase in net worth of corporate executives, Wall St. professionals and other entrepreneurs.

• • •

I commend you to the late Justice Louis Brandeis warning to the nation that "We can have democracy in this country, or we can have great wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can't have both." We have to make up our minds to restore a higher, fairer capital gains tax to the wealthiest investor class-- or ultimately face increased social unrest.

Ouch! And the GOP wants to give these people tax cuts?                                   H/T to Nolan

The burning priviledge of St. Albert

JJ and Pale highlighted a letter sent to the St. Albert Gazette earlier this week where Chris and Karleena Perry decried the notion of low or even (gasp!) middle income families being "allowed" to move into an area that is occupied by.... the conspicuously wealthy. That letter contained such gems as: (all emphasis mine)

The average family income for St. Albert is higher than in Edmonton or any other area municipality. We moved to St. Albert because we can afford it and we deserve it. This is a great city with great families. We feel comfortable joining in activities we would not have considered in Edmonton.

Hmmm. I have relatives who live in that town and I can tell you, they play a lot of this. And then there was this:

When we first moved to St. Albert our teen had a hard time fitting in because of money and it was hard on him. Now he is good, but it did not go away with just a loving hug — his status was accomplished once his friends saw our house and other possessions. It sounds cruel but that is how it is; ask your children, they will tell you.

Aha! The kid gets to be a member of the club because it can engage the other snotty pieces-of-work as an equal. Membership in the "gang" is assured because of parents' wealth. All the trappings will be there - expensive clothes, expensive wheels, expensive iPhone, ad nauseum.

And, of course, the teens appreciate all of this conspicuous wealth and treat it with unbelievable respect. Well.... maybe not so much.

Students were sent home Thursday afternoon from Paul Kane High School, following a small fire investigators believe was deliberately set.

[...]

On Friday RCMP Const. Janice Schoepp confirmed the detachment was investigating the blaze as arson and said they had not yet identified any suspects.

She said the blaze appears to have been started when someone lit a roll of toilet paper on fire, burning both the roll and melting the plastic dispenser, which caused the heavy smoke.

Heh. Start checking a few pockets for one of these.