Estate tax/inheritance tax ??

[Eldritch]

Does your country/state have it?

And what are your feelings on it?

Would you institute it if you could (if you don't have one), or abolish it (in case you do have it)?

No poll, since the issue is at least potentially a complicated one.

[Treffie]

I think it should be abolished altogether. Your parents work their bollocks off to leave you something when they pass, and then the Govt gets their dirty hands on it. :(

[Eldritch]

I think it should be abolished altogether. Your parents work their bollocks off to leave you something when they pass, and then the Govt gets their dirty hands on it. :(

My feelings exactly. Besides, your parents already have paid taxes on everything they built/purchased/earned.

[Loddfafner]

Estate taxes interfere with the continuity of families and contributes to rootlessness. It becomes harder and harder for a family to build an attachment to a place over several generations.

[nisse]

Both Canada (I think in some cases) and Ukraine have it. I don't agree with it since, as was already pointed out, taxes have already been paid.

[Psychonaut]

Estate taxes interfere with the continuity of families and contributes to rootlessness. It becomes harder and harder for a family to build an attachment to a place over several generations.

Agreed. It is possibly the most socially destructive of all taxes and should be the first to be abolished.

[Groenewolf]

I agree with the posters above. It is also a double taxation here, first you pay the inheritance tax and then you have to pay over the amount received the regular income tax.

[antonio]

I agree with you all, and add another reason: it's like steal a dead man...taking into account, the defunt one unprobably prefers give a last amount to the ones which passes yet thru his life stealing it. :D

OTOH, I must add a relevant exception: for me it should be maintained for really big fishes which, at least in a RomanCatholic traditional society how this used to be:D, are always suspected on the ways they became filthy rich. In fact, even if they did not directly steal or cheat nothing from nobody, they for sure payed workers less than they deserved...if not, how they become so rich? :rolleyes:

[Loki]

Estate taxes interfere with the continuity of families and contributes to rootlessness. It becomes harder and harder for a family to build an attachment to a place over several generations.

... which is why the pro-multiculturalist governments love it. It's a great social equaliser. On the one hand (the socialist perspective) I do find merits in it, as it (as least partially) limits unfairness of being born into a rich family and hence have a headstart over those who have not been so lucky. No-one should build their success on what their parents have achieved. Or should they?

[Psychonaut]

Or should they?

Of course they should. Previously, it was unheard of for every single adult to amass the amount of money needed to buy a house. Now, most people live the bulk of their adult life in debt just trying to purchase a home. Why should I not be able to give my children my home? Because the way it's set up now, if I pass on a house, my kids are required to pay between 25-49% of the home's value in taxes. Thus, few are able to do so and must sell the family home just to pay the inheritance tax. This accomplishes nothing but keeping 99% of the population in constant debt. Who does something like that benefit? Certainly not a single one of the 99%.

[Loki]

Of course they should. Previously, it was unheard of for every single adult to amass the amount of money needed to buy a house. Now, most people live the bulk of their adult life in debt just trying to purchase a home.


The problem here is the price of housing, not the lack of inheritance. It is lazy, yuppy-ish and unimpressive for anyone to build their life's success on their parents' wealth. There is no pride or honour in that, nor hard work that leads to accomplishment.



Why should I not be able to give my children my home?

Because they need to earn their own keep and be independent.

[Psychonaut]

The problem here is the price of housing, not the lack of inheritance. It is lazy, yuppy-ish and unimpressive for anyone to build their life's success on their parents' wealth. There is no pride or honour in that, nor hard work that leads to accomplishment.

Bah! You know it's not in our peoples' nature to be content with something they're given. The better among us have always had an innate drive to achieve and expand. Buying a home is certainly a manifestation of this inclination, but what the estate tax does is limit the expression of this trait to this and not much more.

Anyway, debt (especially home debt) in pertetuüm is slavery—pure and simple.

[Eldritch]

The problem here is the price of housing, not the lack of inheritance. It is lazy, yuppy-ish and unimpressive for anyone to build their life's success on their parents' wealth. There is no pride or honour in that, nor hard work that leads to accomplishment.



I don't think every person should necessarily have to start from scratch. I think it's admirable to make the most of what you had to start out with -- whatever those early circumstances were. I think it is perfectly reasonable for anyone to want their worldly property to stay in the family.

Notice that Sweden, sometimes called western Europe's "most socialist" country, does not have inheritance tax -- and I'm convinced that that is one of the keys to Swedes being, in general, a wealthy people who are typically wise with their money.

[nisse]

No-one should build their success on what their parents have achieved. Or should they?

I was thinking something along those lines, but then it occured to me that someone who is not particularily smart or good with money probably won't be able to get the full benefit of the inheritance anyway - they'll squander or mismanage it away...easy come easy go, someone benefits, but at least not the tax man.

[Eldritch]

... then it occured to me that someone who is not particularily smart or good with money probably won't be able to get the full benefit of the inheritance anyway - they'll squander or mismanage it away...easy come easy go, someone benefits, but at least not the tax man.

Yet another reason to legalise pot, gambling and prostitution.

[nisse]

Yet another reason to legalise pot, gambling and prostitution.

...why? Than you'd have to pay taxes on it/profits from it. :ohwell:

(if that was sarcasm, nevermind :D)

[Eldritch]

Well, what I was getting at was that if some dumbass is going to squander his inheritance (which inevitably will happen here and there: as they say, the 1st generation creates the wealth, the 2nd one maintains it and the 3rd one wastes it), then at least some of might as well go to the public purse.

You know, I'm not against all taxes. Only oppressive, initiative-killing and unfair taxation.

[Psychonaut]

You know, I'm not against all taxes. Only oppressive, initiative-killing and unfair taxation.

Obviously. :D

The "death before taxes!" crowd are a bunch of ruh-tards. I would, however, prefer to see my income/assets not be taxed from multiple angles. Like, my income is taxed with every paycheck. Then, any of that money that I spend is taxed by the state. Then, any money that I save is taxed through capital gains. Then, when I give the money (which was taxed when I got it and taxed when I saved it) to my son when I'm old...it gets taxed again. Something about this scenario just seems wrong.

[Groenewolf]

I was thinking something along those lines, but then it occured to me that someone who is not particularily smart or good with money probably won't be able to get the full benefit of the inheritance anyway - they'll squander or mismanage it away...easy come easy go, someone benefits, but at least not the tax man.

Yes, a generation or more of Paris Hiltons is probably not really good for any family fortune.

[The Ripper]

I think it is an unfair tax.

[The Lawspeaker]

They already paid their taxes so inheritance tax is what one here would call "lijkenpikkerij" (literary "stealing from a corpse") and should be abolished as soon as possible.
We too, unfortunately, have both an estate tax and a inheritance tax.

[antonio]

Once upon a time, Id remember in a useless (at least for me) preparation on Laws for a public job exam, defending alone the unfairness of inheritance plus patrimonial taxes on a case specially repugnant: let be a little child which parents die on a crash, inheriting a palace (belonging to his family for siecles) but little money to pay these taxes, so I was the only one openly desagreeing to the accepted solution: sell the palace (probably for an unfair valuation to the topical real-state speculators) to pay the taxes. For me this is simply crazy: if that child has little money to pay the taxes so that child is poor, hence should be free from paying taxing since he grow up and start incoming money, not depriving him from his fucking house just for being too luxury to be payed subsequent taxes on (is a matter of being too poor to deserve something, even if your ancestors deserved it and what it belongs to you). Well, just a nice, maybe unprobable but moving anycase, sample of the ruthless of tax policies.

Ps. Parentisized phrases added in order to add dramatism and unfairness to the situation. :D