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quote:
Originally posted by seeweed:
quote:
Originally posted by elinterventor01:
quote:
Originally posted by seeweed:
quote:
Originally posted by teyates:
seeweed,
The proposal I had read described the first $40K of a family's earnings would be exempt, since that was determined to be a number for which living expenses could be accounted for. I know the figure is not exact, but the premise is that everyone would get one deduction for living expenses and everything else would be taxed.
The effort would be to catch those who deal in a cash only business (drugdealers, pimps, prostitutes, etc) on the consumption end of the cycle as well.
nothing is perfect, but this does make some sense if you can come up with a figure that would work for everyone (ie, 20%).


After reading b50's link to refresh my memory, I still think the "fair tax" is not fair. Why a "prebate" ? AND I also would be concerned with the psychological effect it would have on most people (especially the less- informed) and the consumer driven economy we now find ourselves in. For example, that $1.00 apple now cost $1.30, so "can I do without it" mindset sets in, and there goes the sale of the apple, and all the downstream effects therin (the grower, the picker, the transporter, the grocery store etc)


My personal preference is a flat tax on income with no deductions and no lower limit. In fact, the most likely change to the tax code as it stands is to eliminate a lot of deductions.
Now , a personal digression please: I once had a pretty good friend when I lived in Memphis. He had married a girl from Spain, and ultimately got a job and moved there. He told me that the tax code was a flat 4%, and since it was that way for everybody, when an employer quoted a salary to a person, it was actually take-home pay. I don't know if Spain still has that tax code, or how it worked out in the long run, but something like that sounds pretty good to me.


About Spain, their taxation method really doesn't matter, at this stage. Between over regulation of business, useless spending (green jobs that destroyed 2.3 jobs for every green job created), and over spending, they, like Greece, Italy, Portugal and Iceland, are dragging the rest of the EU down.

"MADRID (AP) - Ratings agency Moody's on Wednesday warned it may downgrade Spain's debt because the government is vulnerable to a borrowing crunch next year, when the recapitalization of weak banks could prove more costly than expected for public finances.

The agency, which lowered Spain's rating from Aaa to Aa1 in September, says it will review the rating again because of high financing needs in 2011 but does not expect the country to need a bailout.

The government's bond yields have risen to high levels in recent weeks amid Europe-wide debt market turmoil. Investors fear that countries like Spain or Portugal will have trouble handling heavy debt loads and require emergency help, like Greece or Ireland.

Spain is considered a risk because it is still struggling to emerge from nearly two years of recession, has the highest unemployment rate in the eurozone and a swollen deficit."

More at:

http://apnews.myway.com/articl...01215/D9K4AB1G0.html


Thanks for the update. I guess that makes the point that lower taxes are not the cure-all for financial problems.


No matter if taxes are low, at the apex of the Laffer Curve where revenue/tax levels are optimized, or well past the curve apex yielding less revenue from higher taxes, politicians screw it up when they forget the other half of the equation. High spending and over regulation will always overwhelm any amount of revenues gained.

Think of it as your teenage daughter loose in Bloomingdales with an American Express Titanium card. It has no spending limit, but you are responsible for the bill!

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