The political logic behind the tax break for capital gains was that it encouraged investment, which would grow the economy. It started in the 20's and 30's.
But a significant portion of the amount invested every day in equities in this country can no longer reasonably be traced to expanding capacity or driving any economic growth (beyond the transaction costs of the investment industry).
Some reform is needed to distinguish between capital gains that plausibly support the economy, and those that, while perhaps rewarding to a short term investor, are ultimately at least not a contributor, and probably just a weight on industry.
I'm not saying you can't be a short term investor. Of course you can. Go buy that guy's system with the red lights and green lights,time your trades during the day or the week, and churn your account.
All I'm saying is that, on income realized from that, you pay tax on it as thought you made the income doing anything else. There is nothing special about it.
