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America's downward spiral summed up in a few sentences... (Original Post) True Dough 18 hrs ago OP
If a U.S. citizens dies in 2026, the fair market value of all assets at the date of death, less liabilities.. surfered 17 hrs ago #1
It isn't always that simple ToxMarz 16 hrs ago #3
You've nailed it FakeNoose 16 hrs ago #4
Exactly and to add FHRRK1 15 hrs ago #8
Then they pass the debt on to the heirs as well surfered 13 hrs ago #18
Yes that's the point, it is cheaper for them to live on borrowed money than pay their fair share of taxes. ToxMarz 12 hrs ago #19
of wealthy PUBLIKKKLAN, by the WEALTHY PUBLIKKKLANS, FOR the wealthy publikklans. pansypoo53219 17 hrs ago #2
Correction. SergeStorms 16 hrs ago #6
Sounds like a great idea LilElf70 16 hrs ago #5
Greed is destroying American society. Aussie105 16 hrs ago #7
One of my aunts used to sum up that attitude as wnylib 15 hrs ago #11
"I'm not greedy..I. just want more than my fair share." BattleRow 15 hrs ago #14
It doesn't have to be that way. Congress could fix all that if we demanded they do it. flashman13 15 hrs ago #9
No they would not Alpeduez21 15 hrs ago #12
I'm not sure how to reply. I guess you are advocating we sit on our ass and do nothing because flashman13 14 hrs ago #17
Congress could fix it if our elected representatives were not beholden to Big Money interests who fund their campaigns. sop 2 hrs ago #22
We need a wealth tax. patphil 15 hrs ago #10
"Outlaw billionaires" Seinan Sensei 8 hrs ago #21
Recommended (#99) H2O Man 15 hrs ago #13
Do they pay back the loans? nt. druidity33 14 hrs ago #15
Kinda, sorta. Close enough. Joinfortmill 14 hrs ago #16
Where do they get the money to make the loan payments? rickford66 8 hrs ago #20
Maybe a dumb question, but: moose65 2 hrs ago #23
So exactly how does the scam work? Lokee11 41 min ago #24

surfered

(13,640 posts)
1. If a U.S. citizens dies in 2026, the fair market value of all assets at the date of death, less liabilities..
Sat Apr 11, 2026, 05:36 PM
17 hrs ago

…is subject to the Estate Tax.

The current exemption is $15,000,000. Amounts in excess of that are taxed at 40%.

ToxMarz

(2,961 posts)
3. It isn't always that simple
Sat Apr 11, 2026, 05:55 PM
16 hrs ago

What the post is referring to is the "Buy, Borrow, Die" Strategy: Instead of selling assets (triggering capital gains) and accumulating cash that would be taxed, they borrow against their fortune to fund their lifestyle and pass the assets to heirs, allowing them to receive a "step-up in basis," eliminating tax on the gains.

FakeNoose

(41,824 posts)
4. You've nailed it
Sat Apr 11, 2026, 06:09 PM
16 hrs ago

This is the thing that all one-per-centers know, and the rest of us will never be able to take advantage of. This is how the system benefits the one-per-centers and nobody else.

Even if we have another New Deal and start taxing the wealthy like we did in 1920, it's already rigged in their favor.

FHRRK1

(46 posts)
8. Exactly and to add
Sat Apr 11, 2026, 06:41 PM
15 hrs ago

A person can inherit the millions, use the step up clause, then down the road take a deduction for LOSSES, on that stepped up amount.

So parents have a stock portfolio where they bought various stocks at $100 per share, children inherit and stocks are all worth $200 per share. A couple years later you need a write off,… hey let’s sell that stock that went from $200 back to $100, and you have a $100 write off!

ToxMarz

(2,961 posts)
19. Yes that's the point, it is cheaper for them to live on borrowed money than pay their fair share of taxes.
Sat Apr 11, 2026, 09:55 PM
12 hrs ago

And none of the debt their heirs have to pay back contributes to our $7+ trillion annual budget. It just goes back into the pockets (with interest ) of some other wealthy people who also don't pay taxes.

pansypoo53219

(23,073 posts)
2. of wealthy PUBLIKKKLAN, by the WEALTHY PUBLIKKKLANS, FOR the wealthy publikklans.
Sat Apr 11, 2026, 05:40 PM
17 hrs ago

they write the tax LOOPHOLES.

SergeStorms

(20,631 posts)
6. Correction.
Sat Apr 11, 2026, 06:24 PM
16 hrs ago

Their asset managers and tax accountants write the loopholes. A great many of these nitwits inherited everything they have and can barely write their own names.

Sometimes I wish I'd been born exceedingly wealthy instead of devastatingly handsome. Humble, too. 😉

LilElf70

(1,583 posts)
5. Sounds like a great idea
Sat Apr 11, 2026, 06:23 PM
16 hrs ago

for 2029. I just listened to https://democraticunderground.com/100221166599. This idea should be on the list when we take everything back. I'm sure we can squeeze it in somewhere.

Aussie105

(7,981 posts)
7. Greed is destroying American society.
Sat Apr 11, 2026, 06:32 PM
16 hrs ago

It's gone from:

'I've got mine, sod you if you haven't got yours!'

to

'You have some left? I need to take that too!'

wnylib

(26,154 posts)
11. One of my aunts used to sum up that attitude as
Sat Apr 11, 2026, 07:01 PM
15 hrs ago

"I've got mine and devil take the hindmost."

(She was referring to the wealthy, not to herself.)

Alpeduez21

(2,058 posts)
12. No they would not
Sat Apr 11, 2026, 07:22 PM
15 hrs ago

People are demanding and demanding and demanding. Neither side has to listen. Gerrymandering has become so perfected that elections for the party candidate are locked in. Primaries can feel like they upset the Applecart but the status quo remains. Voters don’t need to be given attention and the rich buy it. Out of 435 seats in the House maybe 45 seats are actually competitive. They are all rich. They are not going to change the system that got them that way. Inflation is thru the roof. People go bankrupt because their child got sick. We sit around wondering when the game is on or what the ‘real housewives’ are up to. People used to get their heads chopped off for this shit.

flashman13

(2,443 posts)
17. I'm not sure how to reply. I guess you are advocating we sit on our ass and do nothing because
Sat Apr 11, 2026, 08:15 PM
14 hrs ago

change is hard work. You seem to think change is impossible. I don't.

You don't think it can be done? Teddy Roosevelt was elected in 1904, busted the trusts and monopolies, and ended the Gilded Age. Franklin Roosevelt was elected in 1932, along with a very large blue wave. He and the Democratic Congress saved the country from depression and set We the People on the road to becoming a middle class with real power (a legacy the Repugs have worked diligently to destroy ever since). So I think history proves your assessment is wrong.

A good start would be to primary out Jefferies and Schumer and the rest of the AIPACrats and run candidates that pledge to do the people's work.

The Repugs led by Trump the defiler have set themselves up for a sea change political drubbing. It is up to us to deliver it.

sop

(18,782 posts)
22. Congress could fix it if our elected representatives were not beholden to Big Money interests who fund their campaigns.
Sun Apr 12, 2026, 07:46 AM
2 hrs ago

We desperately need to end Big Money's control of elected officials. The only way to accomplish this would be to pass effective campaign finance laws. Unfortunately, the only people who can enact such reforms are completely controlled by Big Money.

And don't get me started on Big Money's control of the media...

patphil

(9,107 posts)
10. We need a wealth tax.
Sat Apr 11, 2026, 06:54 PM
15 hrs ago

A one time tax on all wealth over say, 300 million. It should be graduated based on overall wealth.
People like Musk, Thiel, Bezos, Zuckerberg, and others of the ultra rich class should pay at least 1/3 of their net worth.
Of course "one time" means whenever it gets to a point where we need to make a correction.
Personally, I'd like to outlaw billionaires. If you've got that much, you need to give the excess to charities...not of their making, but legitimate charities. They don't get to decide what the charities are.

Seinan Sensei

(1,573 posts)
21. "Outlaw billionaires"
Sun Apr 12, 2026, 02:41 AM
8 hrs ago

I totally agree
It’s been said, every billionaire is a policy failure

H2O Man

(79,098 posts)
13. Recommended (#99)
Sat Apr 11, 2026, 07:25 PM
15 hrs ago

And yet some get anxious when the reality of economic warfare is mentioned.

rickford66

(6,071 posts)
20. Where do they get the money to make the loan payments?
Sun Apr 12, 2026, 02:30 AM
8 hrs ago

I have a home equity loan. So I have access to a bunch of money, but I still have to make monthly payments to have the use of the money. I use some of my SS for the payments and plan to repay it all when I sell my house. So they have to get money to pay for the loan.

Lokee11

(408 posts)
24. So exactly how does the scam work?
Sun Apr 12, 2026, 10:00 AM
41 min ago

I mean really that is what it is, it is a scam. Like the post previous to this one asks - how do they pay on the loans? how is the scam actually implemented - how does it work?

Thanks in advance for any answers, I truly want to understand .

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