Quote of the Day: Sir Michael Caine on Taxes and Government

As if you needed another reason to like British acting legend Sir Michael Caine. Here's the quote, in the aftermath of the UK government's decision to raise taxes on the wealthy to 50%:

"The Government has taken tax up to 50 per cent, and if it goes to 51 I will be back in America. We've got 3.5 million layabouts on benefits, and I'm 76, getting up at 6am to go to work to keep them. Let's get everybody back to work so we can save a couple of billion and cut tax, not keep sticking it up."

Wait, wait, Sir Michael, what did you say? "Let's get everybody back to work so we can save a couple of billion and cut tax, not keep sticking it up." CUT TAX, NOT KEEP STICKING IT UP? I think I'm in love.

*blows kisses*

UPDATE: More here. Blurb of commentary:

The fact is that Caine, while he may not employ philosophical abstractions to denounce the looting intent of such a tax rise, is at root repelled not by the economic stupidity of such a tax hike, but its essential injustice. What a top-rate tax like this says, in effect, is that no-one should be allowed to rise above a certain level of wealth because it might make others envious. It makes a mockery of all that progressive-leftist talk about removing "glass ceilings" to advancement, etc.