Flat Tax?
A good discussion is on right now on the flat tax. It is on the Dennis Prager Show. Just click here and then, when new screen pops up, click "Listen Live."
Dennis is interviewing Steve Forbes, author of Flat Tax Revolution. The flat tax discussion is on from 10 am - 11 am (PST). In other words, for another 30 minutes from time this posts. Go listen.
What do you think of the flat tax?
posted by W. at 10:29 AM
4 Comments:
I prefer a flat tax rate - at 0%. If 0% is not an option, I would probably prefer a regressive tax to a flat tax at >0%.
Anyhow, what is most important is not the relative rate among the citizens (i.e. whether it is a regressive, flat or progressive rate), but rather that the total expropriation of the citizens' money is kept at a minimum level.
Laying aside my frighteningly anarcho-capitalist tendencies, which cry out in pain at the mere mention of the word "tax," I'd opt for the lowest possible flat tax.
Preferably though, if there *has* to be a tax, it should be a consumption or sales tax, not an income tax.
I disagree with the progressive tax rate for a couple reasons. First, it is unfair to penalize people simply because they make more money than others. Second, it's based upon backwards reasoning. Families with lower incomes are more likely to use public services, so it doesn't make sense to tax them less.
What about a national sales tax? Where does that fit within the discussion of a flat tax, tax reform, etc?
Joseph, VAT is also a tax on income, but it is postponed, that's all.
If you really want to choose among tax systems, I think the best option is a system with only retributions. This means that you only pay for the service you get.
The coercion element in it left is that you can't choose not to pick the service.
One should try to strive to such a system. For example in social security matters this means social security is financed not from money that can be used for everything, but only from the money that is specifically paid for social security.
Leaving aside the discussion whether the next step is to abolish all coercion.
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