It is amazing to think that the wealthy not paying their fair share of taxes goes back hundreds and even thousands of years. Back around the first century B.C. in China, peasant farmers became mired in debt due to increased taxation from the state as the population grew.  The peasants were then forced to sell their land to wealthier land owners to pay off their debts, and in most cases they were forced to become tenant farmers on their previously owned land.  Wealthy landowners(political power) found ways to avoid paying taxes (sounds familiar), thereby increasing the pressure on the poorer classes. This was like a vicious circle, the less taxes the wealthy paid, the more taxes were levied on the peasant landowners, and the more indebted they became, the more they were forced to sell their land to wealthier citizen's who then found ways to avoid paying taxes!  I think this lesson is applicable in today's society, those fortunate to have the most money should pay the most taxes, as they can afford it, and with as few loopholes as possible, and those who have the least should pay the least, so that they can have an opportunity to thrive, and maybe eventually move up into those higher tax brackets, which in the end turns into a positive circle of prosperity, and shared sacrifice.