Dear Editor:

Before we congratulate the Dells for their gift of $6.25 billion to children’s “Trump accounts,” let’s examine the societal implications. Yes, superficially it means some kids are getting a $250 boost to their educational savings.

But American society is becoming one that the rich elite are supplanting the roles of government, community and family in shaping our norms. So should we be thankful that this billionaire benefactor for taking on a role (that of savings) traditionally the purview of parents?

Unlike most wage earners, the Dells are taxed differently. The tax breaks that the rich elite enjoy are directly related to the degradation of our standards of living. For example, decades ago state funded schools were affordable to wage earning Americans. Parents did have to save and students did have to take on part time work to support themselves while in school, but those days are gone thanks to a greed driven tax policy that favors the rich.

It would be a reasonable assumption that the $6.25 billion consisted of long held shares of Dell Inc. stock gifted through a 501(c)3. The capital gains of the Dells’ shares have substantially appreciated over the years, yet no taxes were paid on the gains. Yet, under IRS rules, the Dells can deduct the entire value of the untaxed gift from their income. This is just one example of the extremely favorable tax treatment the rich elite enjoy.

The extreme wealth held by the rich elites is a product of a tax policy that unfairly places an ever larger burden on the backs of wage earning Americans. To pay for these tax breaks for the rich, massive cuts have been made to the very programs that made the American Dream possible. Wage earning Americans are left reeling to pay for their children’s education, housing, health care and retirement. And we are supposed to applaud when a billionaire decides to throw us a $250 gift?

American tax policy is grossly unfair to wage earners. If we are to restore the American Dream, we need a tax policy where everyone pays their fair share.

Fred W. Nehring

Boothbay