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Originally Posted by MPGranger
I think all income taxes are stupid. A federal inclusive sales tax on all goods and services is best. It's a tax on consumption, which is what America is known for.
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Consumption taxes can be used to shape consumer behavior, such as (on topic) road use. If you tax the use of a road directly you can encourage options that may be less convenient but may have a lower overall cost of provision eg. public transport.
Time of use charges could be used to lower the maximum traffic load, so increasing travel speeds (and reducing fuel consumption), or reduce the number of lanes that have to be provided for a given number of journeys.
It depends very much on what the goal is as to where the tax should be applied. If the goal is to reduce reliance on imported energy, conserve a finite resource or reduce exhaust emissions, then fuel taxation is appropriate. If it is to lower the cost of road construction, then direct road use taxes will be more effective, regardless of the energy source propelling the vehicles.
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How would you like to take home 25% more money today? That is what the flat sales tax would do. And then you would voluntarily pay the tax when you decide to consume.
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It sounds good until you realize that everything also costs 25% more and, assuming you spend everything you earn (as some people are forced to do), you are back where you started from.
There are ways to adjust tax systems that have consumption taxes as a part of them so as to minimise the regressive effects. For example you could omit taxing essentials, such as fresh foods, only tax items (of a particular type) that are above a certain value or compensate via income tax rates, with a tax free portion or higher taxation rates at higher income levels.
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Are you poor? Maybe you should plant a garden or raise some chickens so you have a source of reoccurring product.
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I don't know if that is a rhetorical question or not but if it not, no I am not "poor". Not everyone supports social policies that are in their own (financial) self interest. Just ask Warren Buffett.