As Goodwin trenchantly points out, the middle class, now more black and brown than ever before, is being squeezed by the nation’s top tax burden. Our favorite quote: “New York takes a bite out of everything of value.” To his credit, Goodwin also goes after the fees and regulations that sometimes fly below the radar when people examine the city’s unconscionable taxing policy.
The mantra of the tax and spend crowd is always “tax the rich” and the appealing symbolism of the slogan always gives way to the less appealing reality, as Goodwin points out:
But the dirty little secret is that taxes and fees get passed through to the customer, most of whom belong to the broad middle class.This burden is especially onerous to the city’s important small business sector. Already whacked by Bloomberg’s commercial real estate tax, these struggling store owners must fend off a daily barrage from inspectors whose ostensible job is to enforce city codes but whose real mission is tribute to a bloated municipal treasury.
What’s even worse is that after doing everything it can to make neighborhood stores uncompetitive, the Bloomdogglers then adopt a blame the victim economic development policy that seeks to help consumers get lower prices by building megastores that further victimize local stores.
