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Originally Posted by host
ace and joshb....aside from a progressive income tax heavily weighted against the those making the highest incomes (the top ten percent already own 70 percent of all US wealth), and by inheritance taxes on million dollar plus estates,
how would you fairly tax the folks
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Progressive income taxes and inheritance taxes will return to the government some of what their unique connection/influence driven opportunities have brought to them....will return some of "their money" fo the original source where it came from....our tax dollars, appropriated for war and foreign policy objectives.
Can you point to any comparable "fairness" and offset to the rest of us, compared to the profits that my linked post shows went to these guys, that would be included in your tax "reform"?
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Well here it is Host, I want to see a single-schedule comprehensive income tax on individuals and corporations. This is where I am at. I continue to listen and learn all I can to further hone this into the best possible plan for fair and honest taxation.
The goals of my system:
A - Simple: A system where everyone knows exactly how much they are spending in taxes, and can directly correlate government spending with the impact on their taxes.
B - No loopholes: All pay their fair share. Loopholes, shelters, credits, etc. cost honest payers money.
C - Fair burden: All should share the cost evenly (does not equal flatly) of the things which we all benefit.
D - No social engineering: Tempting as it may be, using the tax code to do social engineering invites more corruption than positive social change.
So here's what I want to see in a working system:
1) All income is equal. It shouldn't matter whether you got it through a hard day's labor, cagey investments, or just an allowance from your inheritance trust fund.
2) All gains from operations in the US should be taxed, meaning you can't gain anything by setting up an 'official' headquarters in the Bahamas. Additionally, foreign citizens and companies also will have to pay on the same schedule for gains they make here as well.
3) 'Windfall' income should be able to be amortized over more than one year (up to ten years maybe?), eliminating being 'penalized' for gaining something like an inheritance or lottery, but taxes are still collected.
4) All 'special' taxes should be abolished. This includes taxes on specific events (inheritance taxes), taxes on specific goods, and taxes for specific programs (Social Security payroll taxes for example).
5) All 'user fee' taxes should be abolished. Things like fees to enter National Parks for example. All government services should be available to all regardless of ability to pay, and the poor shouldn't be penalized for utilizing them.
6) All 'penalty/fine' taxes should be abolished. This doesn't mean no fines for law breaking. It just means fines may not be collected to fund the law enforcement process (that leads to corruption). Also, fines should be levied on a basis of burden (i.e. according to one's ability to pay), not on a flat rate that means while a rich and poor man may commit the same crime, the payment may be budget breaking to the poor man but a sneeze to the rich man.
7) There should be no 'sales' tax of any sort (VAT or other such things included). Sales taxes are extremely regressive as they are at best a flat tax (regressive) but in reality when viewed against spending habits, they are unfailingly regressive. The only alternative is to start exempting stuff people have to buy (food, medicine, etc.) but then you are back in the loop-hole game. Unless you are going to have a truly comprehensive sales tax on all purchases (including real estate, stock certificates, labor, b-to-b items, and all other items) then it is unfair and dishonest, because it is really a consumer tax.
8) Individual taxes should be calculated by 'household' permitting all types of family units to be taxed fairly without prejudice to one type or the other. For example, a home with two wage earners earning $25K each should pay the same amount as one with two adults where one earns $50K and the other nothing.
Host, hopefully this clearly answers your question as to what I'm seeking...let me know if you need any more details.
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Originally Posted by host
Isn't it incumbant on the 90 percent of us who have little but our voting numbers to offset the other ten percent's wealth, power, and influence, to use that vote to counter all of their advantages, or use it to increase their advantages at our further expense....
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Democracy isn't about 90% of the people using their majority to exploit the other 10% unfairly. It supposed to be about the 90% being able to not be exploited by the 10% just because the 10% has the guns and the money. It's a delicate line perhaps.
The taxation system has to assess a fair burden on all segments. That doesn't mean it shouldn't be progressive. It just means you can't be exploiting a specific group just because they don't have the votes to defend themselves.