Free gifts for the rich

[Onlooker]

Okay, I'm by no stretch of the imagination rich, but I do okay and have good credit. When I compare my situation to what it was 10 years ago, it looks something like this.

10 years ago, I paid well over 12% interest on credit cards. Now, I pay under 6%, plus I just got from Amazon an offer to borrow up to $20,000 at 1% interest for the first 6 months. In theory, I could borrow the money, by a 6 month CD and make a couple hundred dollars.

In the last two days, I received an offer from Volvo to test drive a car and get a $50 gift certificate and an offer from Lincoln to test drive a car and get a $75 certificate.

I have a special rate on my home equity loan. Right now, I'm paying interest of only 4.50% on $90,000, and I only have to pay the interest. I'm sure richer people are doing better, but those poorer than me are certainly doing worse.

I have received many other offers and discounts as a result of doing okay, and I'm sure millionaires must receive substantially better offers.

Our tax system doesn't take any of this into account. It seems to me that somewhere along the way, the free gifts and discounts you get simply for having more money should be taxed more. My low interest on credit cards and loans in effect is subsidized by the higher interest charged to the poor.

When people talk about flat taxes, they don't take into account the hidden sort of discounts that our economic system provides to the rich. I think this is very unfair.

[AllegroRondo]

1. Thats the way our system works

you have proven yourself to be a good credit risk, so banks can afford to offer you better interest rates.

what really gets me is when banks will try to convince people they have worse credit than they really do, and try to charge them worse rates and fees. This happens especially in the mortgage market, where fees for refinancing below average credit risks are outrageously high.

[Ron Green]

2. Your post makes a good point. The free market seeks to reward people for

upward mobility, which is normal, but the effect is that people above the widening "gap" continue to be rewarded as those who struggle below are further squeezed. I've notice this myself. And the agencies that seek to ameliorate the problems of the "gap" are being themselves starved out of existence by tax-cutting.

[LSparkle]

3. For every you there is a me

Who four years ago was doing okay and getting those offers but who, thanks to no raises and increasing expenses, now has crummy credit and is paying more. It's the yin and yang of life -- I'm just praying that my current circumstances will change and that I can get get back to where you are (where I was). I work in an industry that's been affected by technological "advances" (leading to record piracy) but hasn't responded well, leading to reduced profits, job cuts ... and fewer opportunities. I truly feel like my circumstances haven't been caused as much by my irresponsibility as by the changing business climate -- it's a "bosses market" right now and they tell you you should just be happy to have a job, and not complain about not getting a raise. Hopefully 2005 will be better and I'll start getting those offers again.

[DireStrike]

4. And it costs money to get out of debt!

Please allow our agency to consolidate your debt. For a small fee, we can make everything easier. It will take a little longer because you have to pay us also, but so what? Isn't being in debt your entire life better than struggling?

[cattleman22]

6. RE: "Isn't being in debt your entire life better than struggling?"

NOOOO!

Debt consolidation for some people is a rip off. The first goal to getting out of debt is to live below your means as much as possible. With some struggling, many people can get out of huge amounts of debt. I for one would rather struggle for a few years than live my entire life with debt.

[DireStrike]

8. Yeah that was my point.

:)

[cattleman22]

5. I am not rich but have very good credit.

I am not sure why you claim this is only something that rich or high income people can achieve. I started out with a low credit score and could not even rent an apartment without a co-signor. Now, my score is high enough to get me very good deals for borrowing money. However, I have chosen to never borrow any money that would require me to pay any interest. I use credit cards to pay monthly expenses, but only if I have enough money to pay them off at the end of the month. By doing so I get increased consumer protections, rewards from the credit card, and get to keep money in savings account longer. Just about any person can achieve a high credit score.

[Onlooker]

9. Good credit gets you only so far

I remember when I met with someone regarding my 401K (retirement savings). The person I met with at Smith Barney said I would have to pay something like 1.5% of my money to have them manage it, but if I had $1,000,000, I would only have to pay .9% and if I had more I would pay even less. So, only part of the reward is based on credit score, a larger part is based on wealth. It seems to me, our tax policy should address the problem that private taxes (such as interest rates and commissions on mutual funds) tend to be very regressive, so public taxes should balance that out.

[amazona]

12. exactly

People would die if they realized how little income you can have and still have good credit if you play your cards right.

It's a game a real person can still win.

Unlike the game of getting $100K in debt in hopes of getting the $75K a year job which you in reality could never hope to be hired for because you'll never know or sleep with the right people.

[Dyedinthewoolliberal]

7. This comment may be completely

unrelated to your post, which I agree with, by the way.
I have often thought of this system we have and keep coming to the conclusion that it cannot work unless people are scattered all across the economic spectrum.
In other words, not matter what we are told, there is no way for the system to function effectively, if we were all rich.
We are told to strive for the brass ring, to work towards acquiriing wealth and everything will be good.
Problem is, everyone can't be rich. For one to be rich, someone else must be poor. The idea that anyone can become wealthy is a myth.

[orpupilofnature57]

10. In the sense any one can win the lottery.Look at the rich,someones misery

[amazona]

11. gift should not be taxable events

This is madness. You want to create a world where you give your kid a check for Christmas, and he has to pay taxes on it?

You don't get the gifts just for being rich. You get them for being smart and being able to pass as rich. I've been able to receive thousands -- tens of thousands -- of dollars of gifts over the years from various businesses. Do you think this makes a difference to me on my annual income in the high four figures? You bet it does.

Learn to game the gifts instead of resenting others for getting them just for having the right zip code. Today I received a gift of 10,000 miles from Delta Airlines, worth around $150. Anyone on the internet could have monitored the right sites and gotten the same gift.

Take the test drives and enjoy your gifts. Where is the harm here?

I agree that flat taxes are unfair but hands off taxing the gifts. Sheesh, just imagine -- paying taxes on a rebate from Walgreen's or paying taxes on the rebate on your car!

Gifts are cool. We should have more of a gift economy. Not less.

[Onlooker]

13. That's not what I was saying

I was saying that our tax system should take into account the private taxes (such as the benefits that one gets because they have money)that are terribly regressive.