Why does the average American think that the estate tax is a bad thing? ?

The "average" American will never have to worry about Estate Taxes. The current exemption is $2 million. This probably excludes 99.9% of all US households.

The push in Congress to do away with the estate tax is being funded by 8 or 9 super rich families. You may recognize some of their names: Hilton, Walton, etc. Ironically, the two wealthiest Americans (Bill Gates and Warren Buffet) are advocating keeping the estate tax. They feel that it is their duty to pay it because of all of the success that they have had.

The estate tax debate coming from the Right Wing is their typical BS. Take an extreme situation (losing the farm or the business due to estate taxes) and try and convince people that it will happen to them.

Wayne is right about the CURRENT exemption, but that's scheduled to go up until 2010, then expire. The high exemption for most families except the wealthiest just came in a few years ago.

well, lets see, my parents home is paid for, has been for years. if something were to happen to them and the estate taxes were so high that i could not afford them, i would be forced to sell my families home in order to pay them. does that sound fair?

my parents pay taxes every year, and their aftertax income paid for the home. isn't the estate tax just double taxation on the same income?