Quote:
Originally Posted by Baraka_Guru
Unless the flat rate is high, you're going to need to cut by slashing and burning to make up for the major redistribution of tax collection. Set it too high and you make your poor even poorer.
And you do realize that most countries that currently use the flat-tax system are former Soviet and socialist republics, right? (Including two of the "-stans".) I haven't checked recently, but the last I've heard, a lot of them aren't doing so hot (still).
I guess what I'm trying to get at is that flat-tax systems are (were) often employed in communist-type systems. In former communist states, they still work because there isn't as much of a disparity between rich and poor.
It wouldn't really work in free-market industrialized nations.
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I would like to see how many Americans would be for a 60%-70% flat tax in order to fund every program (including national healthcare). How about a flat tax of 15% on workers income (up to any amount), but 60%-70% on investment profits and 40% on business profits, and 90% for an estate tax...
The flat tax people are fine with it at 15% or 20% for everything if they are making lots of money, but we would still have a national debt and financial problems in a few years with SS and Medicare. Which they don't seem to care about.