Interestingly also, below is an article indicating that yearly federal tax is almost exactly proportional to wealth grouping. Rather than income. As the Fortune article points out, a disproportional amount of productivity increases of the last several decades have gone to the highest earners, including the HENRYs. It makes some inherent sense that taxes paid be proportional in some degree to the proportion of pie one is getting, regardless of how “hard” one works. Whether as suggested below it should be proportional to wealth, rather than income, is an open question maybe some other poster can address. But what it all suggests is that if HENRYs, as in the Fortune article they suggest they really aren’t “rich,” maybe they are better off making common cause with other “workers” and their concern with greater economic stability than with the those that tilt toward maximum economic dynamism regardless of the negative consequences to the larger society (as we are experiencing in an especially large dose at the present moment!).

September 16, 2008
http://www.taxlitigation.net/taxlaw/united-states-tax-distribution/

United States Tax Distribution
Author: taxnick - Categories: Income Tax

As of 2007, there are about 138 million taxpayers in the United States. The Treasury Department in 2006 reported, based on Internal Revenue Service (IRS) data, the share of federal income taxes paid by taxpayers of various income levels. The data shows the progressive tax structure of the U.S. federal income tax system on individuals that reduces the tax incidence of people with smaller incomes, as they shift the incidence disproportionately to those with higher incomes - the top 0.1% of taxpayers by income pay 17.4% of federal income taxes (earning 9.1% of the income), the top 1% with gross income of $328,049 or more pay 36.9% (earning 19%), the top 5% with gross income of $137,056 or more pay 57.1% (earning 33.4%), and the bottom 50% with gross income of $30,122 or less pay 3.3% (earning 13.4%). If the federal taxation rate is compared with the wealth distribution rate, the net wealth (not only income but also including real estate, cars, house, stocks, etc) distribution of the United States does almost coincide with the share of income tax - the top 1% pay 36.9% of federal tax (wealth 32.7%), the top 5% pay 57.1% (wealth 57.2%), top 10% pay 68% (wealth 69.8%), and the bottom 50% pay 3.3% (wealth 2.8%).

You should add Zapata Mexican Restaurant to your map. I ate there with one of Karen’s cousin’s the day before Alex’s bar mitzvah and it was REALLY good. 5975 Peachtree Parkway #2, Norcross. It is right next to a Starbucks.

Regards,
Cy