®1?e ^Jortlnnb (Dbserucr
Pa. < < e 14
January 8, 2014
New Prices
Effective
May 1,2010
Martin
Cleaning
Service
Carpet & Upholstery
Cleaning
Residential &
Commercial Services
Minimum Service CHG
$45.00
A sm all distance/travel charge
m ay be applied
CARPET CLEANING
2 Cleaning Areas or
more $30.00 Each Area
Pre-Spray Traffic Areas
(Includes: I small Hallway)
1 Cleaning Area (only)
$40.00
Includes Pre-Spray Traffic Area
(Hallway Extra)
Stairs (12-16 stairs - With
O ther Services): $25.00
America’s Wealth Concentration has No Limit
Area/Oriental Rugs:
$25.00 Minimum
Area/Oriental Rugs (Wooly.
$40.00Minimum
A callout for
our leaders to
change course
Heavily Soiled Area:
by B ob
Additional $10.00 each area
(RequiringExtensive Pre-Spaying)
UPHOLSTERY
CLEANING
Sofa: $69.00
Loveseat: $49.00
Sectional: $109 - $139
Chair or Recliner
$25 - $49
Throw Pillows (With
th
Other Services): $5.00
%
ADDITIONAL
SERVICES
• Area & Oriental Rug
Cleaning
• Auto/Boat/RV Cleaning
• Deodorizing & Pet
Odor Treatment
• Spot & Stain
Removal Service
• Scotchguard Protection
• Minor Water Damage
Services
SEE CURRENT FLYER
FOR ADDITIONAL
PRICES & SERVICES
Call for Appointment
(503) 281-3949
L ord
Y ou have to co n
sult D ictio n ary .co m
fo r the definition o f
“trillionaire.”
W eb ster’s d o e sn ’t
yet
r e c o g n iz e
trillionaire as a w ord.
B ut it w ill. If y o u ’re u n d er 60,
A m erica’s first trillionaire w ill likely
ap p ear in y o u r lifetim e.
A nd the recen t b u d g et deal in
C ongress does nothing to alter that
scenario.
In 1982, F orbes m ag azin e p u b
lished its first survey o f the 400
w ealthiest A m ericans. T he w ealthi
est A m erican at that tim e, D aniel
L udw ig, held a reported net w orth o f
$2 billion. Bill G ates topped the 2013
Forbes 4 00 list at $72 billion. T h a t’s
a 36-fold increase in A m erica’s larg
est fortune over 31 years.
A nd th e in crease co u ld have
been larger. By all appearances,
G ates lost interest in building his
fortune years ago. H ad he not given
aw ay billions in charitable gifts since
then and had his prim ary focus re
m ained personal w ealth accu m u la
tion, the M icrosoft fo u n d e r’s net
w orth w ould now top $ 100 billion. If
you co u n t total fam ily w ealth, Sam
W alto n ’s heirs already are co m fo rt
ably past the $ 100-billion m ark after
inheriting the W alm art fortune.
A s F o rb es a c k n o w le d g e s, its o f re a l e sta te in M a n h a tta n . A
survey tends to undercount w ealth, trillionaire could take ev ery o n e on
L ast year, a Tax Justice N etw o rk the p lan et out fo r a $100 steak din-
analysis put the u nreported global ner, if w e h ad a restau ran t that could
w ealth stashed in offshore tax h a hold 7 billio n people. A $1 trillion
vens at $21 trillio n .'
fortune w ould equal the w ealth o f a
T he super-rich are setting million millionaires.
new records, $10 billion, $50
W h a t’s fueling this astonishing
billion, and soon enough $ 100 concentration o f w ealth? Tax policy,
b i’lion. R ather than objecting, In Bill C linton’sw ords, it’s ju st arith-
o u r nation celeb rates the in- metic.
creasingly o b scen e fortunes o f
A ll individuals face fo u r princi-
the super-rich as w e do athletes pal constraints on the w ealth they
breaking sports records.
can accum ulate: living expenses, the
*
Taxes on income from capital and
inheritance taxes, in the end, stand as the
only meaningful constraints on wealth
accumulation by the super rich. But these
taxes have decreased over recent decades.
Policy makers have, in effect, lifted the lid
on wealth accumulation by those who
already have significant wealth, while
holding firmly in place the lid on wealth
accumulation fo r those who d o n ’t.
R eaching $ 1 trillion w ill be w hat
hitting 73 hom e runs w as before w e
knew B arry B onds cheated to get
there.
W ill o u r first trillio n -d o llar fo r
tune also be tainted by m isdeeds o f
the ach iev er? C o u ld that be w hat
finally w akes us from o u r slum ber?
A fortune w orth $1 trillion —
$ 1,000,000,000,000— w ould today
be enough to buy ev ery square foot
c o m e fro m la b o r h a v e a n e g lig ib le
c o n stra in in g e ffe c t, b e c a u se th e se
ric h are p u llin g in in c o m e , m o stly
fro m c a p ita l, th a t d w a rfs th e ir liv
in g e x p e n se s.
T axes on incom e from capital and
inheritance taxes, in the end, stand
as the only m eaningful co n straints
on w ealth accum ulation by the su
p er rich. B ut these taxes have d e
creased o v er recent decades. Policy
m akers have, in effect, lifted the lid
on w ealth accu m u latio n by those
w h o a lr e a d y h a v e s ig n if ic a n t
w ealth, w hile holding firm ly in place
the lid on w ealth accum ulation for
those w ho d o n ’t.
A nd things are getting w orse.
S tates are en g ag in g in a destructive
“race to the b o tto m ,” com peting to
see w ho can give the w ealthy the
best deal at tax tim e. A t the federal
level, an underfunded IRS can n o t
k eep up w ith tax law yers and a c
co u n tan ts d ev elo p in g e v er m ore
sophisticated tax-saving schem es.
T he u n avoidable result: W ealth
at the top is grow ing faster than
e v e ry o n e e ls e ’s w e a lth . T h a t’s
w here the arithm etic com es in to
play. If the w ealth o f one group
g ro w s at a fa s te r rate th an the
n a tio n ’s total w ealth, that g ro u p ’s
piece o f the pie w ill increase. T h a t’s
a m athem atical certainty.
A nd unless o u r leaders change
course, A m erica’s w ealth co n cen
tration has no lim it.
taxes they m ust pay on incom e from
labor, the taxes they m ust pay on
incom e from capital, and inheritance
taxes. T he roles those constraints
play ch an g e as p eople m ove up the
w ealth scale.
A t th e b o tto m , liv in g e x p e n se s
an d ta x e s on in c o m e fro m la b o r
Bob Lord is a veteran tax lawyer
g re a tly im p e d e th e a c c u m u la tio n from Phoenix and an associate fe l
o f w e alth . B ut fo r th e s u p e r rich , low with the Institute fo r Policy
liv in g e x p e n s e s an d ta x e s o n in- Studies.