The Bin Laden Tax Plan

Folks are having lots of fun with the latest bin Laden videos. From the beard that looks like it is covered with a gallon of "Just for Men" to questions about "freezing" to jokes about bin Laden's concerns about Koyoto, you have to laugh.

But what I find most interesting are the tax comments. In the video "bin Laden" discusses that the only tax under Sharia would be a 2.5% tax on wealth. Some are joking that maybe al-Qeada is going after the low tax green vote.

As I understand it however, the Zakaat is an annual wealth tax. in the West, most taxes are either taxes on net income (such as the income tax) or taxes on sales transactions (such as consumption taxes or sales taxes). The estate tax is an example of a wealth tax.

So even though a 2.5% rate looks attractive, the actual rate as a percentage of income will be higher.

Steve Forbes therefore probably will not be endorsing bin Laden.