Fairtax

okay, anyone living in the u.s.: what do you think about the Fairtax? Can it be done, who does it benefit, who does it harm?

My thoughts? I love the idea, except the part about families relying on a prebate each month from the Feds, something about that just irks me, but it appears to be both fair and progressive and that's pretty rare.

 

I think it is an improvement over what we currently have, though I am not sure by how much. It is atleast a little bit less intrusive, though I don't like the prebate check. I think instead of the prebate they should just not tax the necessities of life such as unprocessed foods.

Personally I like Ron Paul's idea. Get rid of the IRS, Fed, and income tax and replace it with ... nothing besides reduced spending and smaller government.

 

It's a step up.

 

I agree.

 

I would be happy to see some loopholes closed for the higher brackets.

Just why are all real estate taxes deductable for federal tax purposes?
It is this deductability that tips the balance of your house from being a shelter, to being an investment and brings us: the McMansion.

Just now our Congress is discussing revoking the AMT Alternate Minimum Tax which is the vechile that recaptures such high deductions.

Damm, you want a 6,000 Sq. Ft. home worth: $700,000.00 pay the tax I say.

The hi rollers are all lawyered up and have trust funds and accountants, these are the very folks advocating higher tax rates because the know that only the schmuks lower on the scale will pay anyway.

 

I think that what we have now is better than a flat tax (this is what you mean by 'fair' tax, correct?).
The reason being, 30% of a million a year income is not as devestating as 30% of 15,000 a year. People who earn very little struggle to make ends meet as it is. that five grand could pay for a lot of food, doctors bills, housing, etc. Some one who is more economically secure is able to afford more without significantly impacting their way of life (they have enough money for food, housing, doctors bills, etc.)
Of course, as the op stated above, the super rich (the upper 2%) are able to afford people who are able to get them to pay the absolute minimum. because of a number of loopholes and incentives, they get out of their fair share.
this needs to be fixed.
(of course, i think that we should shift the taxation burden from income/sales to savings.)

 

So which would you rather eliminate, medicare or social security?

 

What real good do either serve? Social security is on its way out and soon to be a thing of the past anyway.

 

The flat tax is still just that: a tax. But instead of being called an income tax, it's incorporated into the sales tax and somehow that makes it "fair," which I find to be rather ironic. Your fiat money will still be taxed from your labor to feed the same corrupt system, so what real difference is there when you really boil it down? Anyone who thinks any of this money goes towards roads and infrastructure is a bit naive, I am afraid to say.

So what really is the fair tax, other than just another empty political slogan that's being promoted from the top, much like socialized medicine? If it didn't somehow benefit those in power, you wouldn't be hearing about it.

 

why would you need to get rid of either?

 

We already have massive state sales taxes at rates from 6% to 8% in places like NY & NJ.
How much more can gasoline be taxed?
Any more tax levied will lead to serious efforts at avoidance. Just read up on all the cigarette tax scammers.

On the other hand, its hard to hide real estate.
Housing as a shelter is a lot more affordable than housing as a shelter and tax write-off combined.

 

Sorry I was referring to Walker's comment.

 

If you want me to pick out of those two choices I would go with Social Security. It is a mess and no one wants to fix it. Well there are those that want to fix it but anytime they mention it the AARP starts screaming bloody murder and they back off. You could get a much better return, as well as leave the money to someone else when you die, by investing that 12.4% of your income else where. This is true no matter how much you make.

But neither of those would be my first choice. There are other things that could be cut without much notice, like the Department of Education. The US did great before this Federal department was created. In fact, the US was number one in education when it was organized at a local level prior to Federal involvement. Now look at us. The DEA could go as well, for starters.

 

I'd get rid of social security in a heartbeat. It's only use now is to cover excessive goverment speading.