[Peace-discuss] An LTE from 3 months ago on a similar subject

[C G Estabrook]

To the editor,

Jim Dey wrote a recent column about the advice on the state's fiscal
woes that the Civic Committee of Chicago and the Illinois Policy Institute
are giving Gov. Pritzker.

Their recommendations omitted what seems to me the best suggestion for
mending Illinois' woes -- a financial transactions tax (aka Tobin tax,
locally a LaSalle Street tax).

Obviously major financial interests in the state oppose even the most
modest sales tax on their activities, but that's surely preferable to
raising other taxes - and, regardless of all the proposed "reforms," more
revenue must be found.

Carl Estabrook
Champaign

> On May 4, 2019, at 10:55 AM, David Green via Peace-discuss <peace-discuss at lists.chambana.net> wrote:
> 
> http://www.news-gazette.com/opinion/letters-the-editor/2019-04-20/letter-the-editor-life-good-those-1-percent-households.html  
> 
> My letter published last Saturday:
> 
> Discussion of Illinois’ budget/taxation issues excludes the context necessary to understand four decades of increased wealth and income inequality, and the concurrent lowering of overall (federal, state, local) tax rates for the wealthy. Historical income and wealth data reflect federal policies, promoted by the 1%, which have dramatically increased their national wealth and income shares while garnering virtually all gains resulting from increased worker productivity.
> 
> Through political manipulation by both parties and their funders, the richest 1% of households has increased its share of national wealth by 20% since 1980, to over 40%. For Illinois one percenters, this means an additional $440 billion, or $7 million per 1% household: those with average assets of $14 million.
> 
> Similarly, the yearly national income share of the wealthiest 1% has increased by 7%, to 18%. In Illinois, this means that households with incomes over $400,000, averaging over $1 million, have in recent years collectively appropriated at least $50 billion annually from the working class.
> 
> Meanwhile, overall (federal, state, local) tax rates for the rich have decreased from 45% to 35% of income, saving $14 billion annually for the Illinois 1%.
> 
> The money needed to fully fund the state budget and pensions is a pittance in these contexts. But propagandists from the Illinois Policy Institute and Chamber of Commerce, lobbying for the greed of the 1%, will continue to offer excuses that don’t rise to the level of “the dog ate my homework.” And Jim Dey will continue to parrot those excuses, ad nauseum.
>