"Gimme Shelter" joke

From a year-end planning guide published by Richard L. Hodge, CPA of
Northboro MA:
"It has been said that the only real tax shelter is death. That's
because a decedent's assets are revalued at their fair market value
at the date of death...
"If the total value of an estate exceeds $600,000, there may be an
estate tax. That is paid by the estate before the heirs get anything.
Massachusetts estate tax applies to amounts in excess of $50,000, but
that has been changed and will gradually increase to the $600,000
exemption by 1996. A good planning strategy is to defer death until
at least 1996."