I asked for a income level, meaning a dollar amount. You finally gave a number, the top 2-3% of wage earners. While that isn't what I was asking for, I do thank you for FINALLY answering the damned question. I've been asking you this for months. At least now we have a basis for conversation.

Based on the IRS spreadsheet based on 2001 figures, someone in the top 1% had an AGI of roughly $292K. The threshold for being in the top 5% was about $128K, so being in the top 2-3% would mean a family AGI in the neighborhood of $200K a year. Look around and see who that describes. Typically, they're small business owners including doctors and lawyers but also the mom-and-pop retail outfits. Someone making $200K a year isn't going to be jet-setting around the world unless they have no financial self control.

Defining "wealthy" as the top 2-3% of all wage earners is a rather arbitrary. It doesn't take into account factors like the local wage scale which is often driven by the cost of living. Someone making $200K a year in most parts of Alabama could live very well. Someone making the same income in Silicon Valley might not even be able to buy a small home. Throw in the very high taxes that they would have to pay and it's almost a certainty.

By way of reference, my wife and I had a combined gross income last year (before deductions) of approximately $140K. That would probably put us at about the top 5% of income for the year. After deductions, our taxable income was approximately $125K. To some people, we would be considered wealthy. When you combine federal income tax, Social Security tax, Medicare tax, Colorado income tax, and a host of other visible taxes, we paid $46,000 in taxes last year, or almost 37% of our after deductions income. Those are just the visible taxes that we paid, not including sales tax, excise taxes, and the stealth taxes that are buried in the cost of everything we buy. Some would say that we should pay more because they want to spend the money on their favorite pet projects. They say that I'm greedy for believing that $46K in taxes for the year was too much. Fuck them. They're the greedy ones for wanting other people's money to buy votes.