Americans will rally in 15 cities across the country at noon
tomorrow to kickoff a national campaign to establish a Wall Street tax that
would generate billions for the public good. This Financial Transaction Tax,
called the "Robin Hood Tax,"
is a levy of less than half of a percent on trades in derivatives, stocks,
bonds and foreign currencies. According to the campaign, economists estimate
that $350 billion could be raised each year for health care, jobs, education,
infrastructure and various other needs, which may help rejuvenate the economy.
The campaign states that it is pushing for “a tax for the people.”
These Robin Hood Tax events will take place in front of
JPMorgan Chase branches because of its recent $2 billion loss from a risky
hedge investment. According to the campaign, it is “the latest bank to have the
spotlight shone on their reckless behavior that has hurt millions.” A Robin
Hood Tax event will also take place in Rio de Janeiro tomorrow at the Rio +20
international conference on climate change.
Though within the last few months the campaign started
reaching the United States, it has been pushed in more than 40 countries over
the last two years. Several countries, including the UK, China, Brazil and
India have already implemented this tax, while France and Germany have aimed to
implement it by 2013.
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