Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
The real reason why the FairTax is a non-starter to begin with is it takes away too much power from the government and politicians. They would lose a tremendous amount of power manipulating us or fighting against each other.
Location: In a Galaxy far, far away called Germany
4,301 posts, read 4,413,714 times
Reputation: 2397
Quote:
Originally Posted by lifeexplorer
The real reason why the FairTax is a non-starter to begin with is it takes away too much power from the government and politicians. They would lose a tremendous amount of power manipulating us or fighting against each other.
And that is why it will never happen. We have exchanged one tyrant (King George) for thousands of them and we call it democracy.
Who will monitor that 23% is added to prices? Who will monitor that the government receives taxes?
Sales taxes are reliably collected today at low cost. The taxes don't currently go to the federal government. But I don't see how it will be difficult to implement.
A 23% tax will create incentive for some to cheat. So auditing of tax collectors, combined with suitable penalties for violators will be required.
From an accounting perspective this should be vastly easier to track than trying to audit today's personal income tax return.
Sales taxes are reliably collected today at low cost. The taxes don't currently go to the federal government. But I don't see how it will be difficult to implement.
A 23% tax will create incentive for some to cheat. So auditing of tax collectors, combined with suitable penalties for violators will be required.
From an accounting perspective this should be vastly easier to track than trying to audit today's personal income tax return.
States, such as NY that have sales taxes, have the Department of Taxation and Finance, that essentially is New York's IRS. They collect these taxes.
There is a tremendous amount of sales tax evasion. I can't tell you how many contractors tell me that if I pay in cash they won't charge tax. I can only imagine how much evasion there would be if the rate was 23%.
Is it me or is this a REALLY good idea. it is essentially abolishing all taxes in exchange for simple 23% consumption tax (with a annual consumption allowance between $10k and $40k, depending on how many dependents you have) .. any country using a tax system like this will HAUL in businesses from the around the world.. HAUL in jobs.. you would be able to tax consumption by illegal immigrants too, or tourists or ANYONE. it will even encourage investments in new businesses which will, together with foreign businesses from around the world, cause a jobs boom. from an economic point of view, this will solve alot of the current economic problems.
Its just you. Its a stupid idea to punish industry.
Quite right and the fair tax will allow them endless tax deferral on the appreciation of their non industrially created, government granted assets. Only people who make goods and service will have a dead weight tax slapped on them while those in their sleep will see their assets sky rocket in price, tax free. But then they are already doing this by shielding their real estate holdings with environmental exemptions. At the right moment, they can cash in on the government created monopoly. The fair tax will only make all real estate fair game. Sweeeeeettt.
I'm a big fan of the Fair Tax. You're taxed on what you spend rather than what you earn and encourages thrift and savings. One of the great things about the Fair Tax is the allowance given to everyone to cover the new taxes on necessities, to prevent it from being a recessive tax. When Jay-Z buys a $100k necklace for Beyonce, he's now paying $23k to Uncle Sam -- it will theoretically make it much harder for the wealthy to dodge taxes and stings them when they throw around their wealth. Of course there will be tax evasion, just as there is now. Any system is going to be abused.
I like that it will make underground economies start paying their fair share. A drug dealer or prostitute would now be pitching in when they buy toothpaste at Walgreens or an extra value meal at McDonalds. It also would lessen illegal immigration, as it would be prohibitively expensive to live in the USA if you were not a legal resident receiving the 'probate' allowance.
But unfortunately it gives away too much power from Washington, so it's unlikely to ever pass.
Is it me or is this a REALLY good idea. it is essentially abolishing all taxes in exchange for simple 23% consumption tax (with a annual consumption allowance between $10k and $40k, depending on how many dependents you have) .. any country using a tax system like this will HAUL in businesses from the around the world.. HAUL in jobs.. you would be able to tax consumption by illegal immigrants too, or tourists or ANYONE. it will even encourage investments in new businesses which will, together with foreign businesses from around the world, cause a jobs boom. from an economic point of view, this will solve alot of the current economic problems.
Sales Taxes are by nature naturally regressive in burden.
While I support the idea, so the underground economy is taxed, I would not let the most wealthy completely off the hook for income taxes, or in the future we'll just return to what we did a hundred years ago making silly taxes on the super rich as their wealth increased exponentially.
A VAT plus a modified flat income tax level (say 1 million @ 15%) would do fine.
Think of all the money that would be saved if we did need the IRS. We have the most complicating tax system in the world, paying your taxes as an individual (let alone a business) should not be this difficult. I support a flat tax, everyone should have some skin in the game.
Is it me or is this a REALLY good idea. it is essentially abolishing all taxes in exchange for simple 23% consumption tax (with a annual consumption allowance between $10k and $40k, depending on how many dependents you have) .. any country using a tax system like this will HAUL in businesses from the around the world.. HAUL in jobs.. you would be able to tax consumption by illegal immigrants too, or tourists or ANYONE. it will even encourage investments in new businesses which will, together with foreign businesses from around the world, cause a jobs boom. from an economic point of view, this will solve alot of the current economic problems.
You will get a lot of posts demonstrating ignorance of the fair tax.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
