"Raise Our Taxes": US millionaires' group

Affluent Americans have so far consistently demanded lower taxes for themselves, with the government often obliging. Now, there are surprising signs that not all wealthy Americans support tax inequities.

Billionaire philanthropist Warren Buffet has famously lamented for years that his secretary pays a higher tax rate than he does. Now, a group of wealthy Americans have gone a step further – they have actually launched a protest against the low taxes they pay, saying they should be taxed more.

Armed with placards reading 'Please Raise Our Taxes' and colourful budget charts, about 75 well-dressed middle-aged folk assembled on the steps of San Francisco City Hall at noon on Tuesday – the tax day for Americans.

"Like millions of Americans, today was not fun - it was more like a root canal," said real estate developer John Stewart, addressing Tax-Us (www.tax-us.info), the "affluent minority" group he founded, which was launched at the City Hall rally. "But I was the beneficiary of Bush-era tax cuts that put more bucks in my pocket."

Those cuts for wealthy people caused today's deficit, he said. That's why his group, which self-identifies as "5 percenters, not 1 percenters," seeks tax increases for themselves and other top earners.

"It's a simple idea of shared sacrifice," said equity fund manager Barney Deasy, president of Merritt Capital. "Tax all of us and do it now."