Raise My Taxes, Please!

[Hippias]

This is why I think that with the threat of national insolvency looming, it is particularly important for as many people as possible to proclaim loud and clear that we don't think selfishness is in anyone's self-interest. And I am willing to put my money where my mouth is. Closing our budget deficits will require sacrifice by everyone, so I think it only fair to start by raising taxes on the group that has benefited most directly from the policies that lead to those deficits: wealthy people like me.

The rich can already pay more taxes so there is no need to raise marginal rates. If this guy wants to help pay off the national debt, all he has to do is mail a check to the Treasury. Raising taxes will empower the government to spend more. The solution is to cut government spending.

[TheOne]

Also lower the pay of politicians. To 20,000 a year.

[Don Diego Vega]

Originally Posted by TheOne

Also lower the pay of politicians. To 20,000 a year.

Yes, yes that is coming. I saw that the Sardinian region of Italy* slashed the number of local government deputies by 50% and I believe they cut pay also.
In order to prevent revolution throughout the West, these bloated western governments must cut their elected and appointed government institutions as an example for the people.

Correction*The Presidency of the Regional Council has validated the 20,000 signatures gathered by Idv sending the two competent committees bills which include halving the number of regional advisers from 80 to 40, the Elimination of subsidies on board groups, the drastic reduction of allowances and the prohibition of external consultants.

[BobbyT.]

How I Paid Only 1% of My Income in Federal Income Tax

In 2009, the median U.S. family had an income of just under $50,000, on which they would have paid roughly $2,761 (or about 5.5%) in federal income tax. I, by contrast, enjoyed an income of $207,415 in 2009, but paid only $2,173 (or 1.0%) in income tax.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eric-s..._b_852948.html

[Grapple]

End the War on Drugs, it fills expensive prisons and turns the police into para-military. Laws should be based on peoples behavior and whether it harms others.

End the War on Terror. Crime is Crime, I am just as terrorized by some local murderer who wants my wallet as some murderer who has politically unpopular views

End subsidies for special people. No more subsidies for rich farmers, or too big to fail banks, or politically connected foundations or groups.

End the Globalist Defense Department. They spend most of the money and resources on defending other countries even if those countries don’t seem to think they need defending. Reducing the Defense Department to just defending the US would require far less money.

Hardest of all is reducing the massive amounts of fraud and waste that occurs in all government programs.

[BobbyT.]

Originally Posted by Grapple

Hardest of all is reducing the massive amounts of fraud and waste that occurs in all government programs.

Well, this is merely a reflection of American society in general. The U.S. government is a perfect reflection of Americans and their mores. Cutting this or that won't change anything without a basic, fundamental change in society as a whole; all governments are reflections of the people they govern. It's impossible for them not to be, at least not for any extended period of time.

[BobbyT.]

Originally Posted by Hippias

The rich can already pay more taxes so there is no need to raise marginal rates. If this guy wants to help pay off the national debt, all he has to do is mail a check to the Treasury. Raising taxes will empower the government to spend more. The solution is to cut government spending.

Middle class anger in the Tea Party era, meanwhile, has been directed primarily at government spending. Arguing that government will simply waste whatever money it receives, Tea Party supporters oppose higher taxes on anybody (which explains why this is one populist movement which many billionaires are happy to support). But by focusing attention solely on whether government costs too much, the Tea Party ignores the completely separate question of who pays those costs. Last year, the answer was: not me.

And I'm not happy about it. Some Tea Party types have observed that I am welcome to pay more voluntarily to the federal government if I want, but this entirely misses the point. Given the choice, of course I prefer to give money to my own causes rather than the federal government. But the whole point of democracy is for the community to decide what activities are in our collective self-interest. "Taxes are the price we pay for civilization," and since we all share in that benefit, we should all pay our fair share of the cost.

While the Republicans talk about the "shared sacrifices" necessary to close our government's budget deficit, their plan imposes pain mostly on the sick, the elderly, and the poor. Asking the rich to sacrifice by paying higher tax rates surely pales in comparison. I believe that having wealthy investors pay taxes at the same rate as middle-class workers would be an important step towards making sure that we all contribute to putting our fiscal house in order.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eric-s..._b_852948.html

[Asterix]

The irresponsible collective known as the U. S. Congress can't even manage the tax money they already have. It is ludicrous to think that simply raising taxes, without addressing the root causes of mismanagement, will lead to responsible expenditure. It will just pour fuel on the fire.

[Hippias]

Originally Posted by BobbyT.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eric-s..._b_852948.html

But by focusing attention solely on whether government costs too much, the Tea Party ignores the completely separate question of who pays those costs. Last year, the answer was: not me.

And I'm not happy about it. Some Tea Party types have observed that I am welcome to pay more voluntarily to the federal government if I want, but this entirely misses the point. Given the choice, of course I prefer to give money to my own causes rather than the federal government. But the whole point of democracy is for the community to decide what activities are in our collective self-interest. "Taxes are the price we pay for civilization," and since we all share in that benefit, we should all pay our fair share of the cost.

Most of the federal apparatus harms private citizens. Few private citizens benefit from a huge military, a Department of Homeland Security, HUD, EEOC, DEA, FDA and the CIA and ATF. The government uses tax dollars to spy on its own people, wage phony wars and ghettoize the cities. It is not upholding civilization.

Americans pay more taxes now as a percentage of GDP than ever. Why does this guy think paying more taxes will have the effect of reducing the deficit, rather than give the state cause to spend more money? He assumes the government will use additional tax funds to pay down the deficit.

Of course wealthy Americans could move abroad and renounce their citizenship.

Rich Americans renouncing US citizenship rose sevenfold since UBS AG whistle-blower Bradley Birkenfeld triggered a crackdown on tax evasion four years ago.

About 1,780 expatriates gave up their nationality at US embassies last year, up from 235 in 2008, according to Andy Sundberg, secretary of Geneva's Overseas American Academy, citing figures from the government's Federal Register. The embassy in Bern, the Swiss capital, redeployed staff to clear a backlog as Americans queued to relinquish their passports.

http://articles.economictimes.indiat...feld-passports

[BobbyT.]

Pretty much meaningless; 1,700 or so out of 6 million, and no stats on what they did for a living or even if they were born here or naturalized and only came here some years ago and are simply giving them up because of the crash and have permanent jobs overseas now. As we've seen, the 'rich' aren't being taxed much, despite all the arm waving and hubris claiming they are. Most of them leaving are probably criminals and swindlers; Haliburton packed up and left for Dubai; it has no extradition treaty with the U.S.