April 2, 2019
Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, announced today that he would soon release a proposal to eliminate massive tax breaks enjoyed by the wealthy on their capital gains income. If successful, the proposal would ensure that income from wealth is taxed just like income from work.
His plan, which he has promised to flesh out in a white paper in the coming weeks, would tax the appreciation of assets owned by the very wealthy as income each year, an approach known as mark-to-market taxation. It would also subject that income to ordinary tax rates rather than special, lower income tax rates that apply to capital gains.
https://itep.org/sweeping-reform-would-tax-capital-gains-like-ordinary-income/
https://www.wsj.com/articles/top-democrat-proposes-annual-tax-on-unrealized-capital-gains-11554217383
(Score: 3, Informative) by toddestan on Monday April 08 2019, @03:59AM
The HFT firms only make a move when they have both a buyer and a seller lined up and it's advantageous to them to act as a middle man. They don't hold onto any stock long term, just long enough for them to complete the transaction which can be as fast as a fraction of a second. As such they provide absolutely zero liquidity, as they simply won't act at all if there isn't already a buyer and a seller.
They provide the illusion of providing liquidity as they do many transactions, both as a buyer and seller. But that illusion can go poof in an instant.