You can say that over and over. But let's face it. If we start with say, a marginal tax rate on income at $1 million of 25% and then reduce it for half the people to 15% and increase on the other half to 35% you're moving money around, even though you've only manipulated tax rates.
you are still missing a single requirement that makes wealth redistribution what it is... the transfer payment.
you can argue until you are blue in the face that tax cuts are welth redistribution, and you will be wrong.. with a blue face.
Let's say two people both make at least $1.1 million. We tax income at $1 million to $1.1 million at 25% starting off. So both will pay 25%, or $25,000 for the year. Now let's split it, we'll tax person A at 15% and person B at 35%. Now person A pays $15,000 and person B pays $35,000. How on earth can you not consider this taking $10,000 from person B and giving it to person A?
again, favorable tax rates are not wealth redistribution.
you can consider your example to be one of taking 10 grand less from person B... but you cannot consider it " giving 10 grand to person A"... no transfer payment was made.
your's is just an example of one person paying less taxes than another, but certainly not wealth redistribution.
If we simply raised person B's tax holding person A's tax rate constant but instead gave person A an extra one-time social security payment of $10,000 you'd call that wealth redistribution, I hope? Does it really matter whether person A is getting $10,000 more in some government benefit or if person A is paying $10,000 less tax to begin with?
yes.. the minute you gave out a transfer payment, it becomes a wealth redistribution.
and now i'm beginning to see your confusion.... you equate keeping your own money to someone giving you someone elses money.
end result might be the same( you got mo money in he bank), but the means are vastly different.
listen, if I shoot you in the heart and you die.. you're dead... from a fatal gunshot wound.
now, if i stab you in the heart with a machete.. are you still dead from a fatal gunshot wound?... you are arguing that , yes.. both are fatal gunshot wounds.
(If you're slow, I'm talking about capital gains vs. ordinary income tax rates - different tax rates, same amount of income.)
meh, doesn't matter.... you still don't quite have the grasp on wealth redistribution yet... but we'll get there