Benjamin Franklin, wise man that he was, indicated the only two things we cannot avoid are death and taxes and in some cases when you die is when you are taxed the most. To understand the "Federal Estate Tax" one must understand how it started. The Estate Tax in its earliest form was instituted in 1916 at that time it was called an "Inheritance Tax" and this tax was levied against the beneficiary of the estate. In most cases this tax was levied against people, whom could least afford this type of tax. The "Inheritance Tax" was eventually restructured to be levied against estates and was protected by a deductible so the people who got the most benefit from the government were also the people who bore the greatest burden of the tax thereby the "Federal Estate Tax" was born. This tax was levied only three years after the...