BF2S Forums Call for 'Robin Hood tax' on banking transactions

They're going about it with the wrong mindset.

Don't tax legitimate business simply because they have the money.

DO leverage taxes based on potential risk factors.

If the banks are making money off of low-risk investments, assess taxes at an equitable level.

If the banks want to get into the risky high-risk bullshit that caused the last collapse, necessitating the last rounds of government bailouts - then tax the living shit out of them, as an insurance policy.  In short, 'If you want to play in the deep end of the pool, we (the people and governments) are going to make sure you've paid the lifeguard up front'

Same principle as basic insurance calculating; Assess the fees and premiums based on risk factors of the client.

That'd also be a relatively hands-off method of government steering the companies away from high-risk areas, without getting too involved and throwing too many oddball obscure rules into the companies operations.
Just a simple commensurate tax, rather than government over-regulation in areas they don't understand well enough.

The companies will weigh the tax factor against the profit margin, and do a very close assessment of profitability. BUT, the tax factor would be a key component in their assessment of the risk/reward scenario.  With the OP suggested flat tax, however, there is no discouragement of investment into risky areas.


Edit: And, unless the UN has suddenly developed it's own standing army and a set of balls, I don't see how on earth there is any possibility of an international or supranational tax.  There seems to be more than a couple different attempts at this one world government taxation scheme lately.

Last edited by rdx-fx (2010-02-13 15:04:56)

Lol people will just move their money from London to the US.

Cybargs wrote:

Lol people will just move their money from London to the US.

This

Its also why the UK Government is scared to impose strict Bonus limits. Everyone will just leave, leaving the Economy in an even worse state.

Higher taxes on banks are just going to get shouldered off onto the public, generating even more poverty to deal with.

Flecco wrote:

jmsprovan wrote:

Cybargs wrote:

Lol people will just move their money from London to the US.

This

Its also why the UK Government is scared to impose strict Bonus limits. Everyone will just leave, leaving the Economy in an even worse state.

I believe that's where the Global part comes in.

I hope they pass this law. Time to invest in NYSE

Banks and bankers are the scum of the earth. They're the ones, along with the stock market, certain politicians, investors and speculators, who are responsible for the economic fuck up we find ourselves in. And here you guys are bleating about how we shouldn't take money from them boo hoo hoo. Fuck all that. Take their fuckin money. They fuck up, and the governments (I'm sure you noticed this) gave BILLIONS to bail them out because they were playing around with OUR money and fucking losing it! So, the taxpayer gives billions to the bankers to get them out of the mess the BANKERS are responsible for, and then they go ahead and pay THEMSELVES hundreds of thousands or millions in bonuses - payed for with the TAXPAYER'S MONEY! When was the last time ANY regular saver got ANY kind of 'bonus' from their bank? NEVER, that's when. Maybe 0.5% interest if you're lucky. Do the people that give their money to make the bank's wealth get a cut? Fuck no, it's taken by the 'experts' who are so good at losing endless millions of our cash.

And for you guys that's OK yeah? Bullshit.

And ghettoperson this has nothing to do with your stupid and ignorant remark about 'communist morons' before you bring that shit up.

I'd rather simply restrict the amount of leveraging that goes on, end all bank bailouts, and heighten reserve requirements, while getting rid of the Fed Reserve and replace it with a public central bank.

Of course, I realize a lot of that is radical and wouldn't likely occur anytime soon.

As for the British banking system, I'm not sure if they have an equivalent of the Fed Reserve or not.

ruisleipa wrote:

Cybargs wrote:

Well it is people's fucking fault for being careless with money in the first place. Bankers aren't "evil" they're just fucking stupid. Governments would have to bail out the banks in the first place so people won't lose all of their fucking money. Don't like it? Don't fucking use certain banks then. Not that fucking hard. You can also blame credit card users and people who take out huge mortgages knowing they can't pay it back.

Don't use what banks? We're constantly told banks are the safest place to keep our money. Whgat else are we gonna do, keep cash under the mattress? If you were a NOrthern Rock account holder I suspect you'd have a slightly more critical attitude than you do. I never said bankers are evil, I just think they're selfish, greedy fucks. There's a difference. Even in the UK the now-part-nationalised banks still make huge gambles with taxpayers money. It's just not right that the people who deposit their monies don't get any payback and are the first ones to get shafted when it all goes tits up. And the bankers still end up with huge bonuses.

Yes, people with credit card debts and massive mortgages etc are also partly to blame. But who was it who told them to take the credit cards/mortgages in the first place? And who GAVE them the credit. the fuckin BANKS. Ergo, I know who I'm blaming the most, and why I support this 'robin hood' tax.

The robin hood tax will be directed towards the rich, who will simply move their money elsewhere. It doesn't solve anything.

ruisleipa wrote:

Cybargs wrote:

The robin hood tax will be directed towards the rich, who will simply move their money elsewhere. It doesn't solve anything.

I admit economics isn't my strong suit, but please tell me, if the 'rich' don't pay tax on their money then what fuckin difference does it make if their money is in the UK or Australia? They don't pay tax, they don't contribute to the country, good, they can fuck off.

Like when idiot celebs 'threaten' to leave the country if a certain person becomes prime minister/president. The celeb is invariably a fuckwit anyway so...who cares?

If you can explain why I should care if rich people go to the cayman islands and make more money for cayman bankers then I am happy to listen...

The tax is mainly aimed at the financial market, eg bonds and stock trade. With the tax the people and companies will piss off from the London Stock Exchange and moving abroad to say, the New York Stock Exchange. They still reside in the country, but their money will be abroad. This idea will just simply make the UK lose more money than it already has. Of course everyone pays taxes, it's just special niche taxes that will drive away a certain market, thus hindering economic growth.

ruisleipa wrote:

Cybargs wrote:

The robin hood tax will be directed towards the rich, who will simply move their money elsewhere. It doesn't solve anything.

I admit economics isn't my strong suit, but please tell me, if the 'rich' don't pay tax on their money then what fuckin difference does it make if their money is in the UK or Australia? They don't pay tax, they don't contribute to the country, good, they can fuck off.

Like when idiot celebs 'threaten' to leave the country if a certain person becomes prime minister/president. The celeb is invariably a fuckwit anyway so...who cares?

If you can explain why I should care if rich people go to the cayman islands and make more money for cayman bankers then I am happy to listen...

It's far more than just 'not your strong suit' from reading your diatribe above about bankers being the scum of the earth. You really have no concept of how the economy you live within works.

yeah well since you are obviously such experts please tell me why I should feel sympathy for the wankers who effectively stole billions from the taxpayer?

or answer my questions.

instead of making childish stupid remarks...like usual.

ruisleipa wrote:

yeah well since you are obviously such experts please tell me why I should feel sympathy for the wankers who effectively stole billions from the taxpayer?

or answer my questions.

instead of making childish stupid remarks...like usual.

They didn't 'steal' anything. The money that they borrowed has been paid back with interest as of over six months ago.

It's not we who are making the childish remarks. You are the one who has claimed ignorance and in the same breath blasted things you do not understand as evil.

How is a place where you can buy and sell a share of the ownership of a company evil? That's all the stock market is. It sells bits and pieces of companies to people such as you and I so that we may profit along with the company. I buy a piece of Coca-Cola and the company does well, the value of my piece goes up. If the company does poorly, the price goes down. There's nothing evil about it no matter how much Marx and others demonized it. All the hate stems from ignorance.