After a year of work, if you pick up a 1040-EZ, follow the directions, fill it out, submit it on time, and the end result is that the refund is greater than you paid — you’ve done your duty as an American. It is no different than a wealthy person hiring talented, well-paid accountants to manage their tax obligations, following the law, with an end result of a 15 percent net effective tax rate.
Does the wealthy person feel equally like a person who’s “getting away with something” than does the person who was not legally required to have a federal income tax obligation feel like a “victim?”
I was once in the 47 percent of Americans, and through hard work and some luck, I find myself happily in the higher-income tax bracket. Mitt Romney’s comments were elitist, patronizing and delivered to his benefactors in a way that shows him to be little more than preening and sanctimonious.
Philip Herold
Vancouver
