How Wal-Mart’s Waltons Maintain Their Billionaire Fortune

[fareastwarriors]

How Wal-Mart’s Waltons Maintain Their Billionaire Fortune: Taxes

 

 

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-09-12/how-wal-mart-s-waltons-maintain-their-billionaire-fortune-taxes.html#disqus_thread

 

 

[Hielko]

They might not pay a lot of taxes, but a lot of money still goes to charities right?

[Guest longinvestor]

Here are my takeaways from the article,

 

1) Put away money that you may not need into great businesses; For a long time (50 years)would be great.

2) Give away to charity assets that have not appreciated yet. Earlier in life the better. Value investors in particular should do more such future giving. The world should benefit greatly if all value investors(billionaires, millionaires and others) do charity a-la Buffett. Let the magic of compounding solve large world problems. Help others' children more than just yours.

3) Don't spoil your children's lives. It is less likely that there will be Sam type business acumen in the business world in the coming Walton dynasty. Perhaps great hunters, horse-riders, Yachters etc. ;)

 

Estate and gift taxes raised only about $14 billion last year. That’s about 1 percent of the $1.2 trillion passed down in America each year, mostly by the very rich, former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers estimated in a December blog post on Reuters.com. The contrast suggests “our estate tax system is broken,” he wrote.

 

Anyone who is in the "small govt" camp finds this to be acceptable need to have their heads examined!

[LC]

Just my thoughts on your last point...I don't think "small govt" and a "broken/loophole-filled tax system" necessarily go hand in hand.

[ERICOPOLY]

Estate and gift taxes raised only about $14 billion last year. That’s about 1 percent of the $1.2 trillion passed down in America each year, mostly by the very rich, former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers estimated in a December blog post on Reuters.com. The contrast suggests “our estate tax system is broken,” he wrote. 

 

 

I'm not too worried that people are allowed to accumulate a lot of money.  The outrage seems to be that families are keeping their money and not having it stolen from them by the public treasury?

 

 

[JBird]

Estate and gift taxes raised only about $14 billion last year. That’s about 1 percent of the $1.2 trillion passed down in America each year, mostly by the very rich, former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers estimated in a December blog post on Reuters.com. The contrast suggests “our estate tax system is broken,” he wrote. 

 

I'm not too worried that people are allowed to accumulate a lot of money.  The outrage seems to be that families are keeping their money and not having it stolen from them by the public treasury?

 

A fair point. I do wish our culture would further encourage individuals to give much of their wealth away; in essence, promote meritocracy.