¨    Reducing Taxes is Critical to Financial Security.   Over the course of time, wealth is threatened by many risks - bad investment results, a rapidly changing economic environment, divorces and business litigation, spendthrift beneficiaries, expanding family needs, and most certain of all - taxes. Regular annual income taxes coupled with a wealth transfer tax on capital at each generation will substantially erode net financial returns, unless reduced by proper planning. Taxes are not always the determining factor in planning, but that does not mean that neglect is benign. Without tax planning, the real world tends to produce investment returns that are negative, when measured across more than one generation after taxes and inflation. Paying unnecessary taxes represents a loss of control.