<br><br><div class="gmail_quote">---------- Forwarded message ----------<br>From: <b class="gmail_sendername">David Bollier</b> <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:david@bollier.org">david@bollier.org</a>></span><br>Date: Wed, Nov 2, 2011 at 9:32 PM<br>
Subject: Fwd: fyi<br>To: <a href="mailto:michel@p2pfoundation.net">michel@p2pfoundation.net</a><br><br><br><br>
<br>
The Wall Street Journal<br>
<br>
OPINION<br>
NOVEMBER 2, 2011<br>
<br>
Time For a Tax on Speculation<br>
Even a small levy could help curb the destructive wheeling and dealing<br>
on Wall Street and raise hundreds of billions in revenue.<br>
By RALPH NADER<br>
<br>
As protesters have refused to yield in their "occupations" of public<br>
places, they have gained momentum and support throughout the country.<br>
Yet for Congress it has been business as usual. Elected representatives<br>
there have virtually ignored the outrage expressed by protesters on Wall<br>
Street and across the country. But the message will keep coming until<br>
Congress finally demonstrates that it is listening. A good start would<br>
be a tax on financial speculation.<br>
<br>
Just two years after the height of the financial crisis, The Wall Street<br>
Journal reported that the top 25 firms on Wall Street paid out a total<br>
of $135 billion in compensation in 2010, providing an average<br>
compensation of $141,000 per employee. Meanwhile, 25 million Americans<br>
are unemployed or underemployed. Wages have remained stagnant, and<br>
median household income is down 7% from 2000, while the largest<br>
corporations and executives have seen record profits and bonuses year<br>
after year.<br>
<br>
The protesters know these economic realities all too well. Not so those<br>
in corporate boardrooms and in Congress, who are insulated by the<br>
bubbles in which they live.<br>
<br>
The politicians�Republicans and Democrats alike�who continue to ignore<br>
the will of the people may face a rocky campaign season. A recent<br>
Reuters/Ipsos poll revealed that 82% of respondents were familiar with<br>
the Occupy Wall Street movement and an NBC/Wall Street Journal poll<br>
showed that Americans supported the protests by a 2-to-1 ratio (37% for<br>
and 18% against). Meanwhile, a Pew Research Center poll in early October<br>
found that nearly half of Americans couldn't name even a single<br>
Republican presidential candidate. These numbers should be giving<br>
corporate plutocrats a scare.<br>
<br>
The prospect of a financial-speculation sales tax already is worrying<br>
them. In late September, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Financial<br>
Services Forum and Business Roundtable, organizations that represent the<br>
interests of the most powerful corporations and financial-services<br>
companies in the world, wrote Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to<br>
express their opposition to such a tax. They spoke for the 1% they<br>
represent, not the 99% whom Occupy Wall Street aims to elevate and who<br>
have to pay a 5%-8% sales tax on the necessities of life.<br>
<br>
Occupiers throughout the country are pushing elected officials to break<br>
the corporate stranglehold on our economy. Both Rep. Peter DeFazio (D.,<br>
Ore.) and Sen. Tom Harkin (D., Iowa) have proposed legislation in the<br>
past that would enact a 0.25% tax on the value of stock, bond and<br>
derivatives transactions.<br>
<br>
But that is far too small. National Nurses United and other progressive<br>
groups believe that we would be better served by a rate of 0.5%. This<br>
could help curb the wheeling and dealing on Wall Street and raise<br>
hundreds of billions of dollars in revenue to help with our country's<br>
economic recovery. According to estimates from a 2009 Center for<br>
Economic and Policy Research paper, a small tax perhaps ranging from<br>
one-half to one-hundredth of a percent, depending upon which financial<br>
product is taxed, could reap $350 billion.<br>
<br>
This tax offers another significant benefit: It has the potential to<br>
curb risky speculative trading that contributes little real economic<br>
value. The Capital Institute's John Fullerton has stated that a<br>
financial speculation tax could have a significant impact on the<br>
high-frequency trading and other "quant" trading strategies that now<br>
comprise an astonishing 70% of vastly bloated equity-trading volume.<br>
Over the past few decades, trading volume has grown exponentially. In<br>
1995 the total shares of stock traded on the Nasdaq and the NYSE, not<br>
including derivatives and other options, was 188 billion. By the peak of<br>
the financial crisis, in 2008, this annual number had skyrocketed to<br>
three trillion.<br>
Critics argue that this tax would be borne by ordinary investors,<br>
retirement funds or mutual funds. But these arguments fall flat when one<br>
considers the enormity of speculative trading that occurs in the stock<br>
market. Sen. Harkin, Rep. DeFazio and others in the past few years have<br>
proposed protecting ordinary investors from the direct effects of the<br>
tax by providing exemptions for mutual funds, retirement funds and for<br>
the first $100,000 in trades made annually by an individual.<br>
<br>
On Nov. 3, the National Nurses United will rally in Washington, D.C., in<br>
front of the U.S. Treasury where they will call on Treasury Secretary<br>
Geithner and President Obama to listen to the voices of the 99%�instead<br>
of the hundreds of millions of dollars the 1% spend every year on<br>
lobbyists and campaign contributions�and support a financial speculation<br>
tax. This movement has made it clear that they aren't going away quietly<br>
and they want their voices heard.<br>
<br>
Already, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas<br>
Sarkozy are pressing for a euro-zone financial transaction tax. The<br>
passage of such a tax would be a great start for our representatives in<br>
Congress to show that they've heard the message. But those who have not<br>
heard it�those at the helm of the Wall Street banks, in the corporate<br>
board rooms, and those in Congress who are representing corporate<br>
interests instead of those of their constituents�they are right to look<br>
at the growing discontent across the country with some unease.<br>
<br>
Mr. Nader is a consumer advocate and the author of "Only the Super-Rich<br>
Can Save Us!" (Seven Stories Press, 2009).<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
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