As we move into the recovery stage, after this long ordeal, this might be a good time to correct a serious injustice that has been quietly accepted in the U.S. for the past century: the taxation of labor income at a higher rate than investment income.

The preferential tax treatment of capital gains income is a major contributor to the shameful and worsening inequality of income in this country. It is also an anachronism: It may have been necessary when it was first adopted in 1921 to stimulate the economy; but the economy scarcely needs this stimulus today, as we can see daily on the front pages of The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.

Yes, I and many other people would pay slightly higher taxes if this provision were changed. But I think that most of us know in our hearts that it is wrong. And we would not stop investing if it were suspended.

Michael Mertaugh
Portland