The Rich Wasp

For some time I have thought about starting my own business.   Recently I was hit over the head with the opportunity to take the leap and be my own boss.  I had to sit down and make a careful decision.  There are obvious benefits to being my own boss, and there are obvious risks involved.  Owning my own business would certainly mean more hours and more stress for the potential of a higher income.

I would like to thank President Obama for simplifying my decision.   After having considered the likely impact of the President’s spending proposals, and the need for a massive tax increase to pay for them, there is no way on earth I want to be running my own business now.   It is obvious to me that taxes are going to have to be raised for more than just the 5 percent who make more than $250,000 per year.  The price of Obama’s tax and spend policies is going to impair economic growth for years to come.

Given a choice between being an employee or a small business owner in the worst economy of my lifetime, I choose employee.  So I’m not going John Galt and dropping out of the economy.  But I’m not going to subject my money or the value of my time to any more risk than I have to in the current economy.   So I’m while I’m definitely not going John Galt by dropping out, I’m also not going to exert any more effort without a clear and immediate reward.

There has been much criticism of the Tea Party movement as of late.  I went to a Tea Party last week.  The document most referenced on signs of the protesters was the United States Constitution.  The person most frequently quoted person on the signs I saw was Thomas Jefferson, who as I recall was a Democrat.

My reason for going was quite simple.  I think the “Change” proposed by President Obama is to take the United States in the wrong direction.  President Obama has proposed massive increases in government spending, and the tax hikes he has proposed to pay for them are clearly insufficient to pay for them.

I predict that the proposed increases in the taxes on the rich will drive the rich to seek to do everything possibly to minimize  their income tax liability.  I predict the rich will leave the office earlier every day and take longer vacations.  I predict the rich will choose to postpone paying higher capital gains taxes by not selling their appreciated property.  I predict the rich will switch to investing in tax free municpal bonds.  All of these things combined will mean that the proposed tax increase won’t bring in as much money as President Obama says it will.

Next year President Obama will redefine rich as anyone who makes more than $200,000 per year and propose even higher taxes on those Americans.   Within just a few years, the rich will be redefined to include those households making $50,000 to $100,000 per year which includes yours truly.  Meanwhile, the deficits will continue to grow, saddling future generations with huge amounts of debt.

This will be another attempt by the Democrats to target the rich.  Just like the Alternative Minimum Tax, though, it will miss the rich it was aimed at and hit solidly on the middle class Americans that Obama claims to represent.

What I saw at the Tea Party was a group of Central Indiana residents who agree with me and have had enough cynical politicians lie to them and wind up screwing them.

This morning I left my apartment wearing a medium weight jacket.  Almost four weeks into spring and I was so cold i wished I had worn my heavy winter coat.  I know that one unusually cold day no more disproves Anthropogenic Global Warming than an unusually hot day would prove it.  But still this spring has been relatively cool, as this was not the first day this sprring I wished for my winter coat.

I am planning on attending the Indianapolis Tea Party which is Wednesday afternoon from 4:30 to 6:30 at the south lawn of the Indiana State Capitol Building.  Will you be there?

Thanks to Nathan Brindle for the information.