I am writing to respond to Seth Murray’s letter (“Tax cuts actually benefit no one,” SN 2/28).

Murray’s statements disagree with many realities of the American economic system and facts about how the wealthy in this country have traditionally become wealthier. Further, Murray’s letter seems to favor discredited ideas about society and economy.

Murray assumes the majority of wealth in American is old money. This is bogus. The majority of “the rich” - men like Bill Gates, Steve Jobs or Larry Ellison - are first-generation success stories. America does not have a dynastic culture on the whole - admittedly, one can cite a high-profile example a family fortune allowing succeeding generations to pursue careers in politics and journalism - but these are exceedingly rare.

Again, the yacht example: Anyone who pulls needed capital out of a corporate venture to buy nice toys isn’t going to last that long in the business world - it’s the nature of capitalism. That said, anyone who buys luxury goods like a yacht keeps a host of tradesmen in the maritime industry employed.

He engages in commerce that connects back to buying metal from U.S. steel and keeping the steel mills open and the workers employed. He engages in commerce that connects back to buying wood from the Pacific Northwest that keeps a logging company or a mom-and-pop mill open; he engages in commerce that keeps the American economy working - and that keeps all those minimum-wage workers employed.

But who works for minimum wage? Minimum wage is not a living wage. It is the price of gaining experience in a particular field. This experience then lets you get advancement in the business world - and you no longer have to work minimum wage. Capitalism is beautiful.

Last, there is a dangerous undercurrent in Murray’s remarks. Our taxes being lower than most other developed countries’ taxes is not a reason to keep from cutting American tax rates. It is a testimonial that Americans recognize the government is not the solution for everything - a painful fact that swaths of socialist Western Europeans are coming to realize.

A fundamental tenet of American constitutional thought was the sanctity of personal property - “Robin Hood tactics” are the seizure of private property - and you can hardly say that because the government took another dollar from Larry Ellison you gained 1 cent, no matter how good it may make you feel.

And, one last thing, I work and thus pay taxes. I, and millions others like me, will benefit from a tax cut.

Jonathan Brown
Lyman Briggs
computer science junior