Tax Revolt
Krieg
Posts: 5,188 ✭✭✭
For anyone who is interested, it is supposed to send congress a message about our tax code. It will culminate into a real tax rally on April 15th in DC. If you hate our tax system, and are getting tired of being punished for trying to achieve, go ahead and sign up.
The Online Tax Revolt is open to every American who believes taxes and spending are out of control, harmful to our country and a threat to our nation's future. Join other Americans as we march online from across the country to Washington, DC and rally together on April 15! www.onlinetaxrevolt.com
The Online Tax Revolt is open to every American who believes taxes and spending are out of control, harmful to our country and a threat to our nation's future. Join other Americans as we march online from across the country to Washington, DC and rally together on April 15! www.onlinetaxrevolt.com
"Long ashes my friends."
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the NRA
and this one...
good cause but i choose to do my protesting at the ballot box.
I wish I could do that with a cigar...
if i understand it correctly, the fair tax would work as follows:
first eliminate all income taxes and all corporate taxes. next institute an across the board sales tax on all NEW goods in the range of 22% - 25% finally, every person in the US would get a check once or twice a year for the tax rate percentage of the poverty level. so if the poverty level is 10K and the tax rate is 20% everyone would get a check for $2000 if it was once a year (or $1000 if twice a year)
this way those who make less than the poverty line dont pay taxes and those who buy more stuff (the rich) will pay the bulk of the taxes.
http://www.fairtax.org
The current progressive code has many parts of the country paying zero taxes (I forget the income cutoff), and has the Gov't paying them rebates - so there are people who are paying nothing in taxes and getting rebates, which is just a wealth transfer. Under the current tax code, that person making $1mill pays closer to 40% of their income in taxes, and the person making $20k pays no taxes, and very likely gets a few thousand dollars in "rebates" from the Gov't each year. It's true that the flat tax would raises the taxes on those making less while cutting the taxes for those making more; but we'd have equality in taxes, with everyone paying their share equally and no one being favored or discriminated against in the tax code. It'd also simplify your taxes, to the point most people could figure what they owe on a postcard.
But anyway, tax policy is really all about incentives - the reason people argue so much over taxes is because human behavior is impossible to predict accurately. High taxes cause people to flee high-tax states, and at some point, when taxes get too high, tax-payers start figuring they're better off trying to evade taxes rather than paying them; but if taxes are low, people figure the penalties aren't worth the risk of tax evasion and they pay their full taxes. The problem is, if taxes get too low, the Gov't doesn't have enough money - this can be a good or bad thing, depending on your politics.
Bottom line is, taxes create or dampen incentives for people to spend and invest; the reason we keep arguing over it is because we're all trying to find the right kind of structure where the Gov't rakes in enough money to operate, without dampening peoples desire to work hard and get ahead in life. We all have the same goal in mind, but we disagree on the path to that goal
I know some people think what this country needs is ANOTER flat tax idea. So ... here's some flat tax vs. FairTax issues some of you may want to consider.
1. In 1986 the Congress reformed our tax code to essentially give us a flat tax ... a flat tax with two rates. Fifteen and twenty-eight percent. Most deductions were eliminated. Today's tax code is the result of that effort.
2. A flat tax leaves the IRS in place. You'll still have to report your income to the IRS every year, and you'll still be subject to audits.
3. Social Security and Medicare payroll taxes? Still there.
4. Do you get 100% of your paycheck? No. Withholding will still be there.
5. Business taxes? Still there .. and they'll remain embedded in the price of every good and service you buy, so you'll be paying them.
6. Corporate board meetings? They'll still spend an inordinate amount of time working on the tax implications of business decisions, rather than just basing their business moves on what's best for their customers and shareholders.
7. K Street lobbyists? They're still there too. They'll still be drawing their six-figure incomes while they game the new flat-tax for the benefit of their clients.
8. Bring American businesses back home? Nope. Business taxes are still there, so American businesses will still locate their operations overseas in order to escape our punishing business income taxes.
9. Death Tax? Gift Tax? Still there in all the flat tax proposals I've seen.
10. Will the flat tax bring American wealth back home? The latest estimates put $10 trillion of American wealth in offshore financial corporations. There is only one reason that money isn't back here working ... and that's our income tax structure. Will the flat tax bring that money back home? Nope. The FairTax? Yup.
11. What about the poor? They're not paying income taxes now ... will they pay the flat tax? No way! But politicians will still be looking for a way to raise taxes on the rich so that they can relieve the poor, poor pitiful poor of the responsibility for paying for their own Social Security and Medicare.
12. Will all Americans be able to buy the basic necessities of life without any federal tax consequences under the flat tax? No. The FairTax? Yes.
13. Will foreign visitors to our shores contribute to our Social Security and Medicare programs under the flat tax? No. The FairTax? Yes.
From my point of view, the flat tax pales in any comparison to The FairTax.
"Long ashes my friends."
My biggest gripe with the fair tax is that it keeps in place redistribution of wealth - it doesn't treat everyone equally and it plays favorites depending on which political party is in power and who they're courting; the Dems may give tax breaks to their political base when they're in power, and the Repubs do the same for their base - a tax code that stops this practice would be preferable. A true flat tax is one rate for all Americans, regardless of income; maybe with a second rate for corporations (yeah, I know it's double taxation). Fair tax is too much like our current code, which can be changed on a whim to punish or favor whichever political group the politicians want. I guess we agree on what needs fixing, but I just have doubts that the fair tax won't morph into the monstrosity that our progressive tax system is in now
"Long ashes my friends."
I'd rather trust a tax system that's already in place and has results we can look at , and that is advocated by a highly successful businessman with experience in the private sector , than a theoretical system that's advocated talk show host with little to no background in economics
I see someone has organized a tea party event in town tomorrow night. I'm thinking about checking it out, but these things tend to bring out the really wacka doos.
1) You're describing a consumption tax; fair tax is more complicated
2) The old money and super-wealthy are reliable democrat donors (think George Soros) - there's no way the dems are gonna support this
3) Business is gonna rail against this because it'll increase the price of domestic goods, while leaving foreign goods untaxed (an attempt to do so would probably be seen as a tariff and invite WTO sanctions); so Repubs aren't gonna support this idea
4) If the fair tax is passed, it's still subject to manipulation when Congress gets to decide what products are taxed at which rate - favored industries will get a lower consumption tax slapped on them than unfavored industries
That's why I don't like the fair tax; it leaves too much room for manipulation by Congress