In reference to the editorial cartoon Dance Moves (Jan. 12): Achieving clarity with respect to taxation is difficult, but here’s one attempt. Begin with two reasonable principles of government. First, that taxation, broadly speaking, should equal the revenue required to fund government expenditures. Second, such taxation should be based on “ability to pay.” Toward which, consider the following:
■ There is a tax on corporate profits which, over the decades, has declined from about 48 percent to 25 percent (although, through exemptions and loopholes, some corporations effectively pay no taxes at all on profits).
■ The federal tax on income from stock dividends is a flat 20 percent. Note that up to 90 percent of stock ownership is concentrated in the hands of the wealthiest 10 percent or so (but that probably also includes pension funds and the like). Stock ownership among the lowest 50 percent of income earners is negligible.
■ The federal tax on wage income, as of 2019, maxes out at 35 percent on that portion of wage income over $500,000. In recent years that tax had been just under 40 percent of wage income over $500,000. Wage earners whose wage income is under about $20,000 a year pay no income tax at all.
In light of this, it seems to me that U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., is only trying to be responsible and honest when she proposes that the tax on that portion of a wage income over $500,000 be raised to 70 percent. Note that this is different — and less — than claiming that the 70 percent rate should apply to the entire $500,000, and hardly the same thing as Uncle Sam (or Ocasio-Cortez) picking the generic “average” taxpayer’s pocket.
While I do not doubt that mediocrity in thought and word is entitled to be heard in the public square, nonetheless, this cartoon smacks of great ignorance on the part of the cartoonist.
Boris G. von York
Springfield, Vt.
I was appalled at the editorial cartoon showing a person of color pickpocketing her neighbor (Dance Moves, Jan. 12).
I had hoped that we were above racial stereotypes in this neck of the woods, but I guess that Klan-style reporting is alive and well at the Valley News. You have just lost a loyal reader.
Russ Martin
Chelsea
The Trump administration has given the go ahead to spray nearly half a million acres of citrus grove with antibiotics.
The purpose is to delay the death of citrus trees due to citrus greening, a deadly disease. However, the antibiotics do not cure the disease, but only keep the trees alive a few extra years.
The juice from the infected fruit has a bitter taste and is mixed with the juice of healthy fruit to hide the bitterness.
This spraying will be repeated for the next several years. As the citrus industry is key to Florida’s economic health, it is understandable the state would want to keep the trees producing as long as possible.
However, scientists are already having difficulty keeping up with antibiotic resistant bacteria. Such a large-scale use of antibiotics is going to accelerate and magnify the health risks.
As antibiotics lose their potency, we will be seeing the return of such “ancient but not extinct” diseases as gangrene, tuberculosis, leprosy and bubonic plague, which are all bacterial in origin and readily treatable now.
This is a tough problem without a simple solution. But given that it is the Trump administration, I doubt that scientists were consulted or heeded in making the choice to spray. That is the most worrisome thing.
Mark Allen
Thetford
Three things to think about: First, at his inauguration, President Donald Trump swore to “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution.”
Second, Article 2 of the Constitution requires the president to “take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed.”
Third, how many thousands of laws is President Trump failing to execute while his shutdown goes on?
William J. Donahue
Hartland
It is time to start thinking about filing your federal and state income tax returns. The AARP Tax-Aide Foundation will be offering free tax return preparation for seniors and moderate-income taxpayers of all ages.
Preparers will be on hand Tuesdays, from Feb. 5 to April 9, at the Upper Valley Senior Center in Lebanon. Call 603-448-4213 to make an appointment.
Peggy Mitchell
Canaan