The Estate Tax debate is interesting to me. Rich guys like Warren Buffett and Bill Gates are opposed to eliminating the tax in the name of "fairness." But they plan to leave their billions to a foundation, so the government won't get their money. Their heirs will probably be on the board of directors of the foundation so they will still benefit from the money. (I've heard rumors that those who control billions of dollars always have a lot of influential friends, but I can't prove that.) I wonder if it might not be better to have the state take half the money, and give the rest to the heirs. The heirs might make some useful investments with the money thus creating a lot of jobs. Foundations tend to become liberal with time, eventually becoming socialistic. I don't see a lot of useful work done by most foundations. The combination of Buffett's and Gates's money will create a huge foundation that will rival some goverments in economic power. All of this brings to mind the Knights Templar, an organization featured in the recent movies "National Treasure" and the "Da Vinvi Code," as well as in the novel "Ivanhoe." The Knights Templar grew so rich that they were destroyed by the Pope and the King of France (though it seems they never found the money). I wonder how long it would be before the US government takes action against a super powerful Foundation such as the one Gates and Buffett envision?