[Terr_]

No, I'm saying the tax basically never takes 40% of the estate assets that are being gifted to recipients. That 40% is just one number in a larger equation, and it's wrong to use it out of context in a way that makes the policy seem harsher/scarier than it really is.

However it also true that 99% of the time the estate tax is $0, but that just tells you 99% of Americans die without being that rich. It doesn't mean that piece of the system is not effective or necessary at doing a job. If we had no estate tax, that would create a massive loophole people would abuse so that other taxes stop working as intended.

It's like how the vast majority of cars will not hit the railing that stands between them and a deadly plunge off the edge of the cliff... but we still need to keep it for when it matters.

[Teever]

Walter is just wasting your time because he's a Libertarian who doesn't believe in (m)any tax policies but he doesn't want to outright say that because he knows most people are wise enough to disengage from conversations like this with a Libertarian.

So instead he'll just act like he didn't read that "basically" that you wrote, despite quoting it and then pretend like he doesn't really understand what you just wrote above.