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I was pleasantly surprised to see actor George Takei make a web video for President Obama’s re-election effort this fall. I’m a fan of Takei’s Facebook Page and saw that he was going to be on MSNBC’s The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell. In a recent post, Takei blogs about why he wants to be taxed higher:
“…But as an actor today, I enjoy a lifestyle my parents probably never dreamed of. Despite how this country has at times misstepped and mistreated us, I love America and believe in her promise of providing equal opportunity for all. I want to see her back on top. That is why I feel it is not only fair, but my patriotic duty to support higher taxes on the top 2% percent of incomes.
During the first few years of the George W. Bush era, when there was still a surplus, they cut these taxes a few percentage points. These marginal tax rate cuts were never meant to be permanent; none of us who got them expected them to be. We always knew they’d one day return to the levels they were during the Clinton era. To suggest that we now shouldn’t give them up is silly, especially in a time where we are facing huge deficits and a looming “fiscal cliff.”…”
It has been interesting to see Takei take a more open and active role in expressing his political beliefs in such a later stage of his life and career. I think most would agree that Takei is one of the most recognized Asian Americans in the United States today and I am glad to see him speak out more beyond his activism for gay rights – now for fiscal sanity and bring a new face to America that hasn’t necessarily been as involved as it should be into public policy discourse.
