Kamala Harris Supports Tax on Unrealized Capital Gains: What It Means for Wealth

[Poker Player]

Some russian companies have agreements with good paid clinics and the situation is better there, but where there is a general medical examination program and the doctor has to see 50-70 people a day, it is like filling out paperwork and many diseases may not be found.

Therefore, in Russia it is easier to spend 150-200 dollars a year on yourself in a good paid clinic and not spend a lot of time.

If you want to take angalysis for free, but you have to make an appointment at a state clinic, wait 2-3 weeks or more, then ask the doctor to schedule these tests.
You may be given a referral for the next month's tests. All free medicine requires a very long wait in queues, but it is good that there is such medicine.

So it is similar to most European countries, so that poor people have access to health care and middle and high income people can sometimes use public health care but sometimes prefer to pay for private health care because waiting times are shorter.

Yes, it is good that there is universal access to health care for the population without having to pay, I agree. In the same way that I think it is also good that there is an option of private medicine that you can go to by paying.

[zasad@]

It's not crazy, it's a statistic that is factored into pensions, benefits, and so on.
My close relatives have an average pension of 250-350 dollars. And if a man did not work officially at all and lived to the age of 65, he will be assigned a pension in the form of the minimum subsistence level in his region

most retirees here in the usa probably have about $5000 to $6000 per month to live on. and that's not really considered rich. it's just basic middle class. they can afford to put food on the table and pay their basic necessities.

that's just considered middle class here. nothing out of the ordinary...

on the other hand if someone never worked a day in their life here, they could probably still get about $1000 per month for free from the government every month. that's once they get to retirement age.

For example, a good set of 14 tests to assess the condition of the heart and blood vessels will cost you 50 dollars.

thats funny because doctors here in the usa are only interested in treating diseases so they can make alot of money. they're not interested in someone that just wants to monitor their health and do some basic tests.   no one does that here anyway the only reason you go to the doctor is if something is WRONG. not if you feel ok and just want to run a bunch of tests. no one does that!

everyone can have their own opinion but i don't think most doctors want their patients to get better because if they get better then they can't keep billing their insurance.

A pensioner with an income of 5-6 thousand dollars a month can go to live on a pension visa in any Asian country and live there like a king. For example, ask users from Philippines, how can you sew in their country with such an income?

I completely agree with you that no one is interested in my health and some people I know were found to have cancer and other dangerous diseases when it was very late.  That is why I have to look after my health myself and turn to doctors I know, who will give good recommendations.

Some russian companies have agreements with good paid clinics and the situation is better there, but where there is a general medical examination program and the doctor has to see 50-70 people a day, it is like filling out paperwork and many diseases may not be found.

Therefore, in Russia it is easier to spend 150-200 dollars a year on yourself in a good paid clinic and not spend a lot of time.

If you want to take angalysis for free, but you have to make an appointment at a state clinic, wait 2-3 weeks or more, then ask the doctor to schedule these tests.
You may be given a referral for the next month's tests. All free medicine requires a very long wait in queues, but it is good that there is such medicine.

So it is similar to most European countries, so that poor people have access to health care and middle and high income people can sometimes use public health care but sometimes prefer to pay for private health care because waiting times are shorter.

Yes, it is good that there is universal access to health care for the population without having to pay, I agree. In the same way that I think it is also good that there is an option of private medicine that you can go to by paying.

I am interested in the prices of tests in private medicine in Europe. For example, my friend who lives in Indonesia pays 1500 dollars for similar tests in a European clinic.

[larry_vw_1955]

A pensioner with an income of 5-6 thousand dollars a month can go to live on a pension visa in any Asian country and live there like a king.

i'm not so sure about that. in some countries a foreigner can't even own land. they are probably best off staying in the usa where they can own things. plus, why would a retired person want to go to some foreign country when they have lived in the usa all their life? they don't even understand what they are getting into necessarily. they don't have any rights in other countries but i guess they don't realize that maybe. they are just visitors. nothing more.

as far as i can tell, the only valid reason for wanting to leave the usa is to relinquish ones usa citizenship. that way they wont' have to worry about any taxes from the IRS or anything like that ever again.

[zasad@]

A pensioner with an income of 5-6 thousand dollars a month can go to live on a pension visa in any Asian country and live there like a king.

i'm not so sure about that. in some countries a foreigner can't even own land. they are probably best off staying in the usa where they can own things. plus, why would a retired person want to go to some foreign country when they have lived in the usa all their life? they don't even understand what they are getting into necessarily. they don't have any rights in other countries but i guess they don't realize that maybe. they are just visitors. nothing more.

as far as i can tell, the only valid reason for wanting to leave the usa is to relinquish ones usa citizenship. that way they wont' have to worry about any taxes from the IRS or anything like that ever again.

And why would a pensioner worry about taxes when pensions are generally tax-free like other social security benefits.

Why should you own property and land in another country when for $1,000 you can rent a big house on the beach with a housekeeper?

You yourself say that an income of $5000 is for the ordinary middle class, and in another country with that income you will live in better houses, hotels, condominiums and you will still have money left over.

What rights have you been deprived of? You can get married, you can get a business visa and open a business, you can buy a car, a motorbike and travel around the country.

[larry_vw_1955]

And why would a pensioner worry about taxes when pensions are generally tax-free like other social security benefits.

IRS reminds taxpayers their Social Security benefits may be taxable
https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-reminds-taxpayers-their-social-security-benefits-may-be-taxable

Why should you own property and land in another country when for $1,000 you can rent a big house on the beach with a housekeeper?

because they can raise the rent? because they can tell you what you are allowed to do and not? because they can kick you out if they want to?

You yourself say that an income of $5000 is for the ordinary middle class, and in another country with that income you will live in better houses, hotels, condominiums and you will still have money left over.

i don't think $5000 per month goes as far as some people might think when it comes to living in foreign countries. you can go broke even with that type of income.

What rights have you been deprived of? You can get married, you can get a business visa and open a business, you can buy a car, a motorbike and travel around the country.

its very simple, you are not a citizen of that country so you have no rights. that's why the american embassy is there to save your ass. if you're lucky. if you're not lucky then you might get locked up in jail and never see the light of day. just something to keep in mind.

[zasad@]

And why would a pensioner worry about taxes when pensions are generally tax-free like other social security benefits.

IRS reminds taxpayers their Social Security benefits may be taxable
https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-reminds-taxpayers-their-social-security-benefits-may-be-taxable

Why should you own property and land in another country when for $1,000 you can rent a big house on the beach with a housekeeper?

because they can raise the rent? because they can tell you what you are allowed to do and not? because they can kick you out if they want to?

You yourself say that an income of $5000 is for the ordinary middle class, and in another country with that income you will live in better houses, hotels, condominiums and you will still have money left over.

i don't think $5000 per month goes as far as some people might think when it comes to living in foreign countries. you can go broke even with that type of income.

What rights have you been deprived of? You can get married, you can get a business visa and open a business, you can buy a car, a motorbike and travel around the country.

its very simple, you are not a citizen of that country so you have no rights. that's why the american embassy is there to save your ass. if you're lucky. if you're not lucky then you might get locked up in jail and never see the light of day. just something to keep in mind.

In Russia, pensions and social benefits are not taxed and are not subject to declaration. This is like a disease of the system, when you give money with one hand and take it away with the other. Why do it if these actions only burden tax inspectors with additional work?

In Russia, for example, if you apply for benefits, all other income and other benefits are checked. If other allowances are already sufficient in the opinion of the state authority, then a new allowance can be assigned to you in the amount of 25%, 50% of the amount, but the state will not then demand taxes from you.

You think Asian countries don't have laws?
If you get a pension visa, which is easy enough to apply for, and you don't commit crimes, who will kick you out or put you in jail?

In some warm countries the average salary is 200-500 dollars, and with a pension of 5000 dollars you will not be at a loss. I have not heard such stories when a hotel owner throws out a tourist who pays all the bills correctly.
___
I think you have certain prejudices about tourist prisons in other countries. You can open youtube and see many stories of Americans who live with their pensions in other countries and have no problems with the law.
Americans and Europeans are very rich people in terms of income in asia, so such tourists are always welcome.

[Poker Player]

In Russia, pensions and social benefits are not taxed and are not subject to declaration.

I didn't know that. I envy you at this point, really.

This is like a disease of the system, when you give money with one hand and take it away with the other. Why do it if these actions only burden tax inspectors with additional work?

It's just like that. A trick of the con man, on the one hand I give to you and on the other hand I take from you.

Back to the main topic, the protagonist of the thread, who seems to be the winner of yesterday's debate, is the type who spends all her time thinking about how to raise taxes, and I don't think it even crosses her mind to remove the taxes that apply to benefits and pensions (although in pensions this would be simplifying a bit, because depending on whether you have contributed to an IRA or a 401, it's different).

[zasad@]

In Russia, pensions and social benefits are not taxed and are not subject to declaration.

I didn't know that. I envy you at this point, really.

This is like a disease of the system, when you give money with one hand and take it away with the other. Why do it if these actions only burden tax inspectors with additional work?

It's just like that. A trick of the con man, on the one hand I give to you and on the other hand I take from you.

Back to the main topic, the protagonist of the thread, who seems to be the winner of yesterday's debate, is the type who spends all her time thinking about how to raise taxes, and I don't think it even crosses her mind to remove the taxes that apply to benefits and pensions (although in pensions this would be simplifying a bit, because depending on whether you have contributed to an IRA or a 401, it's different).

Well let's think a little bit about why taxes in the US will increase. The U.S. has a very large national debt, but if you look at the statistics of the ratio of national debt to GDP, the statistics are excellent on paper.
But in practice, the US GDP is very much overstated due to the financial sector, which in most cases does not generate profits, but only redistributes profits among market participants.

The U.S. cannot reduce spending, so the national debt, and then interest on loans, and then taxes will increase every year.

[larry_vw_1955]

In Russia, pensions and social benefits are not taxed and are not subject to declaration. This is like a disease of the system, when you give money with one hand and take it away with the other. Why do it if these actions only burden tax inspectors with additional work?

In Russia, for example, if you apply for benefits, all other income and other benefits are checked. If other allowances are already sufficient in the opinion of the state authority, then a new allowance can be assigned to you in the amount of 25%, 50% of the amount, but the state will not then demand taxes from you.

it's different here in the usa. nearly everything is taxed. not only that but social security might be going bust in the 2030s to where it won't be able to pay people 100% anymore. so before someone goes and rushes off to some other country thinking that their social security is going to pay for it, maybe they should think about that.

You think Asian countries don't have laws?
If you get a pension visa, which is easy enough to apply for, and you don't commit crimes, who will kick you out or put you in jail?

The police that's who. Now once you get in jail, you might not have any rights. So you might end up staying in jail without a quick trial. You could literally spend YEARS in jail. And no one is going to care about you. Unless you can get the American Embassy in that country to help you out somehow but they only have so much pull because again, it's not their country and you're not a citizen and you don't have any rights. Just something to keep in mind. How you get into jail is not important but once you get there you are kind of screwed.

In some warm countries the average salary is 200-500 dollars, and with a pension of 5000 dollars you will not be at a loss. I have not heard such stories when a hotel owner throws out a tourist who pays all the bills correctly.

yeah that's a common misconception that a foreigner can survive on the same amount as locals do. Their $5000 might not even go as far as their $500. Put simply, if you cant make $5000 per month work here in the USA, you probably can't make it work much better anywhere else.

___
I think you have certain prejudices about tourist prisons in other countries. You can open youtube and see many stories of Americans who live with their pensions in other countries and have no problems with the law.
Americans and Europeans are very rich people in terms of income in asia, so such tourists are always welcome.

Rich people going to foreign countries for tourism and such. They are expected to be big spenders and tip big. Yeah that's going to cost something... they are not doing normal tourists any favors though since now the normal tourists will become looked upon as undesirable since they don't spend as much 

[zasad@]

In Russia, pensions and social benefits are not taxed and are not subject to declaration. This is like a disease of the system, when you give money with one hand and take it away with the other. Why do it if these actions only burden tax inspectors with additional work?

In Russia, for example, if you apply for benefits, all other income and other benefits are checked. If other allowances are already sufficient in the opinion of the state authority, then a new allowance can be assigned to you in the amount of 25%, 50% of the amount, but the state will not then demand taxes from you.

it's different here in the usa. nearly everything is taxed. not only that but social security might be going bust in the 2030s to where it won't be able to pay people 100% anymore. so before someone goes and rushes off to some other country thinking that their social security is going to pay for it, maybe they should think about that.

You think Asian countries don't have laws?
If you get a pension visa, which is easy enough to apply for, and you don't commit crimes, who will kick you out or put you in jail?

The police that's who. Now once you get in jail, you might not have any rights. So you might end up staying in jail without a quick trial. You could literally spend YEARS in jail. And no one is going to care about you. Unless you can get the American Embassy in that country to help you out somehow but they only have so much pull because again, it's not their country and you're not a citizen and you don't have any rights. Just something to keep in mind. How you get into jail is not important but once you get there you are kind of screwed.

In some warm countries the average salary is 200-500 dollars, and with a pension of 5000 dollars you will not be at a loss. I have not heard such stories when a hotel owner throws out a tourist who pays all the bills correctly.

yeah that's a common misconception that a foreigner can survive on the same amount as locals do. Their $5000 might not even go as far as their $500. Put simply, if you cant make $5000 per month work here in the USA, you probably can't make it work much better anywhere else.

___
I think you have certain prejudices about tourist prisons in other countries. You can open youtube and see many stories of Americans who live with their pensions in other countries and have no problems with the law.
Americans and Europeans are very rich people in terms of income in asia, so such tourists are always welcome.

Rich people going to foreign countries for tourism and such. They are expected to be big spenders and tip big. Yeah that's going to cost something... they are not doing normal tourists any favors though since now the normal tourists will become looked upon as undesirable since they don't spend as much  

So the US authorities are fighting unemployment, if one inspector accrues pensions and benefits and another inspector makes sure that taxes are paid on these pensions and benefits.

I don't understand why you think you're going to jail? You can rent for 1000-1500 dollars a flat in a luxury condominium with a guarded area, beaches, swimming pools, shops, hospitals and even a golf course. You won't even have to leave the property.
And your neighbours will be other Americans, Europeans and rich Asians.

And you can return to the United States at any time if you need to.

Many Russians give their flats in Moscow, while they themselves live abroad on that money
And renting a good flat in the central part of Moscow costs from $1,500 to hundreds of thousands of dollars if you want to see the famous red square from your window

[larry_vw_1955]

I don't understand why you think you're going to jail?

exactly! neither do some of the people that get thrown in jail when they are in a foreign country. example:

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-65530105
Her first six months were spent in solitary confinement, being placed in stress positions and, though being interrogated, with no access to a lawyer.


i understand though that we're always quick to say journalists are a special case who that hasn't happen to non-journalists. not so sure i agree with that though.

You can rent for 1000-1500 dollars a flat in a luxury condominium with a guarded area, beaches, swimming pools, shops, hospitals and even a golf course. You won't even have to leave the property.
And your neighbours will be other Americans, Europeans and rich Asians.

you definitely need a guarded area because as we know, you don't have any rights and need to be protected when you're in a foreign country. they can throw you in jail for anything at all. so your idea to not leave the property is probably prudent. no need putting yourself at risk.
 

Many Russians give their flats in Moscow, while they themselves live abroad on that money
And renting a good flat in the central part of Moscow costs from $1,500 to hundreds of thousands of dollars if you want to see the famous red square from your window

sounds like new york city to me. without the red square  

[airfinex]

The main thing is not the content, but the title of the article. You must understand this.

Before anyone starts screaming, as I'm fairly sure nobody will read the article itself:

Specifically, households worth more than $100 million would pay an annual minimum tax worth 25% of their combined income and unrealized capital gains.

9,850 centi millionaires in the US will pay 25% of the annual gains, not their worth, furthermore, the tax applies to only those ones who don't pay already 25% tax on their income. So a guy that makes 2 million a year and has 200 million worth of assets will not benefit anymore from a tax deduction to lower his tax below $500 000 that year! On top of that, you would be exempt from this tax if you don't hold more than 80% of your wealth in tradable assets.

Read more here:
https://www.axios.com/2024/08/23/kamala-harris-unrealized-capital-gains-tax

And now I am curious if there is one user here that qualifies for this tax. 

[zasad@]

I don't understand why you think you're going to jail?

exactly! neither do some of the people that get thrown in jail when they are in a foreign country. example:

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-65530105
Her first six months were spent in solitary confinement, being placed in stress positions and, though being interrogated, with no access to a lawyer.


i understand though that we're always quick to say journalists are a special case who that hasn't happen to non-journalists. not so sure i agree with that though.

You can rent for 1000-1500 dollars a flat in a luxury condominium with a guarded area, beaches, swimming pools, shops, hospitals and even a golf course. You won't even have to leave the property.
And your neighbours will be other Americans, Europeans and rich Asians.

you definitely need a guarded area because as we know, you don't have any rights and need to be protected when you're in a foreign country. they can throw you in jail for anything at all. so your idea to not leave the property is probably prudent. no need putting yourself at risk.
 

Many Russians give their flats in Moscow, while they themselves live abroad on that money
And renting a good flat in the central part of Moscow costs from $1,500 to hundreds of thousands of dollars if you want to see the famous red square from your window

sounds like new york city to me. without the red square  

This is a special case and is related to “illegally supplying state secrets overseas”. Such cases are usually closed.

If you are in possession of state secrets, you should not travel to other countries until certain deadlines have passed.
In Russia, officials, police, military and so on cannot travel to other countries and need special permission to do so. And any person in the Russian Federation who has access to state secrets cannot leave the Russian Federation officially without a special permit.

But if you do not possess state secrets, you have nothing to worry about.

[larry_vw_1955]

But if you do not possess state secrets, you have nothing to worry about.

that's definitely not true. you have alot to worry about. unless you plan on hiding in a cave. because anytime you go out in a foreign country you're putting yourself at risk. get into some type of altercation? hopefully no one files false charges against you. because you could end up having to pay alot of money or maybe just sit in jail for a while without a lawyer or anything. you might not ever get out if the charges are serious enough because foreign countries have a way of trying to make examples out of foreigners even if it was an honest mistake...

[zasad@]

But if you do not possess state secrets, you have nothing to worry about.

that's definitely not true. you have alot to worry about. unless you plan on hiding in a cave. because anytime you go out in a foreign country you're putting yourself at risk. get into some type of altercation? hopefully no one files false charges against you. because you could end up having to pay alot of money or maybe just sit in jail for a while without a lawyer or anything. you might not ever get out if the charges are serious enough because foreign countries have a way of trying to make examples out of foreigners even if it was an honest mistake...

And watched a lecture by a pchysotherapist who struggles with people's phobias.
He showed a very simple method.  If we project his method onto our example, we need to do something like the following.

If we count the known cases where Americans have been detained in other countries on false charges and divide that number by the number of people who have successfully lived abroad and returned to the United States, we get a very very very very very very small percentage.
If we compare that percentage to the number of people in the U.S. who have gone or traveled to a store in the U.S. and been killed or been in a fatal accident divided by the total number of people who go to the store, we realize that going to the store in the U.S. is more dangerous than traveling abroad.

[odolvlobo]

This is known as a "wealth tax," and the goal is to tax wealthy households that increasingly avoid taxation by living off unsold and unrealized assets.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/kamala-harris-supports-tax-unrealized-193900073.html
how anyone could be against this is mind boggling. do you want the ultra wealthy to keep paying no taxes? how about lets have them paying taxes on all their huge assets that they have been evading taxes on for a long time by playing games?  

According to my understanding and without knowing the details of this particular proposal, I have several objections to taxing unrealized gains in general:

• 1. It is a financial burden on people. If you own a house, you will have to pay income tax on its appreciation. Lots of people have a hard time just paying the property taxes. Now, they would have to pay this tax too. Imagine a retired person who owns their home, but they are living on social security. Where would they get the cash to pay this tax?
• 2. It is an accounting burden. You have to keep track of the value of everything that you own and get an appraisal every year: your car, your house, your furniture, your jewelry, your baseball card collection, your gold and silver, ...
• 3. It becomes a huge invasion of privacy. You must register everything that you own with the government.
• 4. Currently, any time you sell something, you are taxed on the realized gains, which are nothing more than gains that were previously unrealized. The numbers would be exactly the same. Taxing unrealized gains would just replace taxing realized gains with the main difference being that the cost of the accounting would much higher.

Specifically, households worth more than $100 million would pay an annual minimum tax worth 25% of their combined income and unrealized capital gains.

Remember that the federal income tax was originally only supposed to apply to wealthy people, too. Now, it's a major headache for every person.

[Poker Player]

According to my understanding and without knowing the details of this particular proposal, I have several objections to taxing unrealized gains in general:

• 1. It is a financial burden on people. If you own a house, you will have to pay income tax on its appreciation. Lots of people have a hard time just paying the property taxes. Now, they would have to pay this tax too. Imagine a retired person who owns their home, but they are living on social security. Where would they get the cash to pay this tax?
• 2. It is an accounting burden. You have to keep track of the value of everything that you own and get an appraisal every year: your car, your house, your furniture, your jewelry, your baseball card collection, your gold and silver, ...
• 3. It becomes a huge invasion of privacy. You must register everything that you own with the government.
• 4. Currently, any time you sell something, you are taxed on the realized gains, which are nothing more than gains that were previously unrealized. The numbers would be exactly the same. Taxing unrealized gains would just replace taxing realized gains with the main difference being that the cost of the accounting would much higher.

I can think of another one. You file your income tax return in April, and in it you pay taxes for the previous year. You may have $100M of asset valuation on December 31, 2024 but on April 15, 2025 there may have been a big market downturn. Let's imagine, while we are on this forum, that you have that $100M in bitcoin. The downturn may be so big that you don't even have enough to pay the fee, even though you haven't realized anything. Between December 2017 and April 2018 the price of bitcoin dropped 65 or 70%. Although volatility is normal that it tends to reduce over time, something like that or worse could happen again.

And without going to such exaggerated examples that make you pay for a supposed capital gain that you have not realized when you are losing money at the time of paying it is nonsense.

[larry_vw_1955]

Remember that the federal income tax was originally only supposed to apply to wealthy people, too. Now, it's a major headache for every person.

well, that's what we're headed towards so might as well get used to that idea. whether we like it or not that's what they're going to do.  

I can think of another one. You file your income tax return in April, and in it you pay taxes for the previous year. You may have $100M of asset valuation on December 31, 2024 but on April 15, 2025 there may have been a big market downturn. Let's imagine, while we are on this forum, that you have that $100M in bitcoin. The downturn may be so big that you don't even have enough to pay the fee, even though you haven't realized anything. Between December 2017 and April 2018 the price of bitcoin dropped 65 or 70%. Although volatility is normal that it tends to reduce over time, something like that or worse could happen again.

And without going to such exaggerated examples that make you pay for a supposed capital gain that you have not realized when you are losing money at the time of paying it is nonsense.

you're the one that owes the money because you gambled. you knew at the end of 2017 how much unrealized gains you had and how much tax you would need to pay but you let it "ride". and never took anything out and then you lost how is that different from a degenerate gambler who uses their rent money to play craps and ends up homeless?

[odolvlobo]

I can think of another one. You file your income tax return in April, and in it you pay taxes for the previous year. You may have $100M of asset valuation on December 31, 2024 but on April 15, 2025 there may have been a big market downturn. Let's imagine, while we are on this forum, that you have that $100M in bitcoin. The downturn may be so big that you don't even have enough to pay the fee, even though you haven't realized anything. Between December 2017 and April 2018 the price of bitcoin dropped 65 or 70%. Although volatility is normal that it tends to reduce over time, something like that or worse could happen again.
And without going to such exaggerated examples that make you pay for a supposed capital gain that you have not realized when you are losing money at the time of paying it is nonsense.

you're the one that owes the money because you gambled. you knew at the end of 2017 how much unrealized gains you had and how much tax you would need to pay but you let it "ride". and never took anything out and then you lost how is that different from a degenerate gambler who uses their rent money to play craps and ends up homeless?

Being forced to sell property in order to pay for its unrealized gains is a big problem. Imagine that it is your home that you have to sell.

[zasad@]

I can think of another one. You file your income tax return in April, and in it you pay taxes for the previous year. You may have $100M of asset valuation on December 31, 2024 but on April 15, 2025 there may have been a big market downturn. Let's imagine, while we are on this forum, that you have that $100M in bitcoin. The downturn may be so big that you don't even have enough to pay the fee, even though you haven't realized anything. Between December 2017 and April 2018 the price of bitcoin dropped 65 or 70%. Although volatility is normal that it tends to reduce over time, something like that or worse could happen again.
And without going to such exaggerated examples that make you pay for a supposed capital gain that you have not realized when you are losing money at the time of paying it is nonsense.

you're the one that owes the money because you gambled. you knew at the end of 2017 how much unrealized gains you had and how much tax you would need to pay but you let it "ride". and never took anything out and then you lost how is that different from a degenerate gambler who uses their rent money to play craps and ends up homeless?

Being forced to sell property in order to pay for its unrealized gains is a big problem. Imagine that it is your home that you have to sell.

"You have nothing, but you're happy"(C)  We've heard that.