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本帖最后由 Jigong 于 2011-8-16 18:35 编辑
【中文标题】停止善待超级富豪
【原文标题】Stop Coddling the Super-Rich
【登载媒体】纽约时报
【来源地址】http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/15/opinion/stop-coddling-the-super-rich.html
【原文作者】 WARREN E. BUFFETT 沃伦•巴菲特
【译 者】Jigong
【翻译方式】人工
【声 明】本翻译供Anti-CNN使用，未经AC或译者许可，不得转载。
【译 文】
OUR leaders have asked for “shared sacrifice.” But when they did the asking, they spared me. I checked with my mega-rich friends to learn what pain they were expecting. They, too, were left untouched.
我们的领导人要求“共同牺牲。”但当他们提出要求时，却饶了我。我问过我的超级富豪级的朋友们他们期待怎么样的疼痛。但我发现他们也被幸免了。
While the poor and middle class fight for us in Afghanistan, and while most Americans struggle to make ends meet, we mega-rich continue to get our extraordinary tax breaks. Some of us are investment managers who earn billions from our daily labors but are allowed to classify our income as “carried interest,” thereby getting a bargain 15 percent tax rate. Others own stock index futures for 10 minutes and have 60 percent of their gain taxed at 15 percent, as if they’d been long-term investors.
穷人和中产阶级为我们在阿富汗战斗，大多数美国人入不敷出，我们这些超级富豪却继续得到我们非凡减税。我们当中的投资经理人从我们的日常劳作赚取数十亿但可以把我们的收入作为“附带权益，从而得到超低的百分之15的纳税率。其他人自己的股票指数期货持有10分钟就需要为利润 的百分之60纳付百分之15的税，因为他们被当成是长期的投资者。
These and other blessings are showered upon us by legislators in Washington who feel compelled to protect us, much as if we were spotted owls or some other endangered species. It’s nice to have friends in high places.
华盛顿的立法者赏赐这些和其他祝福给我们，他们也觉得有必要保护我们，我们就像斑点猫头鹰或其他一些濒危物种。有位高权重的朋友是值得庆幸的。
Last year my federal tax bill — the income tax I paid, as well as payroll taxes paid by me and on my behalf — was $6,938,744. That sounds like a lot of money. But what I paid was only 17.4 percent of my taxable income — and that’s actually a lower percentage than was paid by any of the other 20 people in our office. Their tax burdens ranged from 33 percent to 41 percent and averaged 36 percent.
去年我的联邦税收-所得税支付的工资税，以及由我和以我的名义支付的税收— 共6,938,744美元。这听起来像是有很大笔的钱。但我所付出的只是我应纳税所得额的百分之17.4，这实际上是一个较低的纳税率，比在我们办公室的其他20人支付的都低。他们的税收负担，纳税率从百分之33到百分之41，平均是百分之36。
If you make money with money, as some of my super-rich friends do, your percentage may be a bit lower than mine. But if you earn money from a job, your percentage will surely exceed mine — most likely by a lot.
如果你像我的一些超级富豪朋友那样以钱赚钱，你支付的纳税率可能会比我的略低。但如果你靠工作赚钱，你支付的税率一定比我的高-很可能高很多。
To understand why, you need to examine the sources of government revenue. Last year about 80 percent of these revenues came from personal income taxes and payroll taxes. The mega-rich pay income taxes at a rate of 15 percent on most of their earnings but pay practically nothing in payroll taxes. It’s a different story for the middle class: typically, they fall into the 15 percent and 25 percent income tax brackets, and then are hit with heavy payroll taxes to boot.
为了理解情况，你需要看看的政府收入来源。去年政府约百分之80以上的收入来自个人所得税和工资税。超级富豪缴纳的所得税税率是百分之15，而他们大部分几乎不必缴纳工资税。中产阶级的情况完全不同：他们通常得缴纳百分之15和百分之25的所得税，并受到沉重的工资税的负担。
Back in the 1980s and 1990s, tax rates for the rich were far higher, and my percentage rate was in the middle of the pack. According to a theory I sometimes hear, I should have thrown a fit and refused to invest because of the elevated tax rates on capital gains and dividends.
上世界80年代和90年代，富豪们缴纳的税率要高得多，我需要缴纳税率和他们不相上下。根据我有时候听到的，我应该会由于资本收益和股息的高税率而拒绝投资。
I didn’t refuse, nor did others. I have worked with investors for 60 years and I have yet to see anyone — not even when capital gains rates were 39.9 percent in 1976-77 — shy away from a sensible investment because of the tax rate on the potential gain. People invest to make money, and potential taxes have never scared them off. And to those who argue that higher rates hurt job creation, I would note that a net of nearly 40 million jobs were added between 1980 and 2000. You know what’s happened since then: lower tax rates and far lower job creation.
我没有拒绝，其他人也没有拒绝。我和投资者努力了60年了，我还没有看到任何人-即使是1976 – 77当资本收益的纳税率为百分之39.9 – 因为潜在利润的高税率而避开任何一个明智的投资。人们投资赚钱。潜在的税收从来没有把他们吓跑。对那些认为高纳税率伤害创造就业机会的人，我要指出的是，1980至2000我们创造的就业机会接近4 千万。你知道过后发生了什么事情：低税率、低就业。
Since 1992, the I.R.S. has compiled data from the returns of the 400 Americans reporting the largest income. In 1992, the top 400 had aggregate taxable income of $16.9 billion and paid federal taxes of 29.2 percent on that sum. In 2008, the aggregate income of the highest 400 had soared to $90.9 billion — a staggering $227.4 million on average — but the rate paid had fallen to 21.5 percent.
国税局从1992开始汇编了美国前400 名收入最高的美国人的数据。1992，前400 名收入最高的美国人应纳税所得额是169亿美元，支付联邦税百分之29.2税收。2008，前400 名收入最高的美国人总收入飙升至909亿美元-平均每人2.274亿美元的惊人收入-但平均利率下降到百分之21.5。
The taxes I refer to here include only federal income tax, but you can be sure that any payroll tax for the 400 was inconsequential compared to income. In fact, 88 of the 400 in 2008 reported no wages at all, though every one of them reported capital gains. Some of my brethren may shun work but they all like to invest. (I can relate to that.)
我这里说的税收只包括联邦所得税，但可以肯定的是，任何工资税的400相比是微不足道的收入。事实上，这400 人中的88人，在2008的报告没有工资的，虽然他们每个人都报告了资本收益。我的一些弟兄会逃避工作，但是他们都喜欢投资。（我可以证明。）
I know well many of the mega-rich and, by and large, they are very decent people. They love America and appreciate the opportunity this country has given them. Many have joined the Giving Pledge, promising to give most of their wealth to philanthropy. Most wouldn’t mind being told to pay more in taxes as well, particularly when so many of their fellow citizens are truly suffering.
我知道很多的超级富豪都是非常正派的人。他们热爱美国，也感激这个国家给了他们机会。许多人参加了捐款，答应捐出他们的大部分财富用于慈善事业。他们大多数也不介意缴纳更多的税，特别是当他们的许多同胞都真正的生活在痛苦中。
Twelve members of Congress will soon take on the crucial job of rearranging our country’s finances. They’ve been instructed to devise a plan that reduces the 10-year deficit by at least $1.5 trillion. It’s vital, however, that they achieve far more than that. Americans are rapidly losing faith in the ability of Congress to deal with our country’s fiscal problems. Only action that is immediate, real and very substantial will prevent that doubt from morphing into hopelessness. That feeling can create its own reality.
十二个国会议员（组成的“削减赤字委员会”）不久将采取的关键工作重新安排我们的国家财政。他们奉命制定一个计划，10年赤字减少至少1.5万亿美元。不过，他们的目标必须远远超过这数目。美国人正在迅速失去对两院处理我国的财政问题的信心。只有马上行动，直接，真实和实质性的行动，才能防止大众的怀疑变成绝望。这种感觉可以演变成现实。
Job one for the 12 is to pare down some future promises that even a rich America can’t fulfill. Big money must be saved here. The 12 should then turn to the issue of revenues. I would leave rates for 99.7 percent of taxpayers unchanged and continue the current 2-percentage-point reduction in the employee contribution to the payroll tax. This cut helps the poor and the middle class, who need every break they can get.
这十二个国会议员的第一份工作是削减一些未来的承诺，一些甚至富裕的美国都不能满足的承诺。在这里大量的金钱必须得到保存。他们接着应该把目标锁定于收入。我会让百分之99.7的纳税人的纳税率保持不变，并继续减少员工贡献的工资税的百分之二。这将有助于穷人和中产阶级，他们需要他们所能得到的减税。
But for those making more than $1 million — there were 236,883 such households in 2009 — I would raise rates immediately on taxable income in excess of $1 million, including, of course, dividends and capital gains. And for those who make $10 million or more — there were 8,274 in 2009 — I would suggest an additional increase in rate.
但对于那些2009年 的收入超过一百万美元的236,883家庭,我会立即对他们那超过一百万美元的应纳税所得额提高纳税率，其中，当然包括股息和资本收益。对于那些收入一千万美元或更多的，- 2009年共有家庭- 我建议额外增加纳税率。
My friends and I have been coddled long enough by a billionaire-friendly Congress. It’s time for our government to get serious about shared sacrifice.
我和我的朋友们被对亿万富翁友好的国会善待了太久。现在是我们的政府需要认真对待共同牺牲的时候了。
Warren E. Buffett is the chairman and chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway.
沃伦•巴菲特是伯克希尔哈撒韦公司董事长兼首席执行官。
Jigong ：第一次真正的坐下来搞翻译，希望各位高手多多指教
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发表于 2011-8-16 20:44
发表于 2011-8-17 11:35
