> If you make $100,000, at a 91% tax rate you'd have $9,000 left over to invest. If you are taxed at 28%, you'd have $78,000 left to invest. $78,000 is greater than $9,000.

This is a misunderstanding of how marginal tax rates work. A 91% marginal rate only applies to income above a very high threshold. In the 50s and 60s, that rate didn’t kick in until income hit around $2 million in today’s dollars. So no, someone making $100,000 wasn’t being taxed at 91%. And the ultra-wealthy still had plenty of money left over to invest after deductions and shelters, which is why the economy grew so well.

> Right, because they weren’t actually paying those rates.

True, but they were still paying effective rates that were much higher than today’s ultra-wealthy. The top 0.01% today often pay effective rates around 20%, while back then, even after deductions, they were paying closer to 50-60%. That’s a big difference, and it contributed to a more equitable economy. Do you think that the economy is healthier today and that this is a result of the current tax policy?

> The wealthy do not hoard wealth. There are no Scrooge McDuck cash vaults. All their money is invested, not hoarded. If you tax the money away, it is no longer invested.

This is a cute image, but “hoarding” doesn’t mean stuffing cash under a mattress. Hoarding happens when money is funneled into assets that don’t circulate productively in the economy—things like luxury real estate, golf courses, art, or stock buybacks that inflate share prices without creating value. Investing in financial instruments that primarily benefit the ultra-wealthy doesn’t generate the kind of broad-based economic growth that happens when money flows through the middle class.

> Wealth creation is not “concentrating” wealth. Wealth is not a fixed pie.

True, but wealth concentration is still a problem. While wealth isn’t a zero-sum game, extreme concentration reduces economic mobility and slows down overall growth. When too much money pools at the top, it reduces aggregate demand, which is what drives a healthy economy. If you don't think that this is a problem with current levels of wealth distribution, what levels of wealth inequality would we have to see for you to consider a problem?

> A government contract is not a subsidy. SpaceX and Starlink were not subsidized.

This is semantics. SpaceX received millions in government contracts before proving its capabilities. Early-stage government money often functions as a de facto subsidy, reducing risk for the private sector. NASA essentially de-risked SpaceX’s early development, and without that, it’s unlikely SpaceX would have succeeded. Government contracts don’t magically appear out of nowhere—someone took a bet on Musk, and it was with taxpayer money. I think that's great, but we should have more tax money to make these kinds of bets and we can get that money by having higher taxes on the ultra-wealthy.

> I subscribe to C. Northcote Parkinson's observation that a 10% flat tax makes for the most prosperous economy while providing sufficient funding for the government.

A 10% flat tax? That’s fantasy land. It’s a cute theory that ignores the realities of modern economies. Flat taxes disproportionately burden the poor and middle class while letting the ultra-wealthy off the hook. There’s a reason no prosperous nation has implemented a flat tax at that level and maintained the kind of infrastructure, education, and public services necessary for sustained growth.

Even Estonia, often held up as a model of flat taxation, doesn’t follow that script. Estonia’s system isn’t a pure flat tax—there’s a 20% flat income tax plus a 33% payroll tax for social services. And importantly, Estonia relies heavily on VAT (value-added tax), which disproportionately impacts lower-income households.

> Stock buybacks are also investments.

Not really. Stock buybacks are often a way to boost share prices and executive bonuses. They don’t add productive value to the economy or create jobs. In fact, before 1982, they were considered a form of market manipulation and were illegal.