Do we really need Amendment XVI?

[jayem]

Our taxes are still low compared to most other developed, first world countries. Marginal tax rates in western Europe are usually 40-50% or more. (But they provide more social services--notably, health care.) Interestingly, many former communist countries in eatern Europe are going to a flat tax.

 

[CCGirl]

I don't know what the alternative could be to not providing income to the govt. This is vital in a modern, civilized nation. We all enjoy driving on decent roads, libraries, schools, health care, military, police, firemen, etc. Those cost money and lay the basis for stability.


What alternatives are there?

 

[UberLutheran]

My question is this. Obviously, there were enough people in most of the states that liked this amendment to allow it to pass.

My question is this. In order for a civilized society to function, should the government be allowed to appropriate money directly from the income of individuals?

Do we want to provide for a national defense, highways, clean water, clean air, safe food, safe pharmaceuticals, people to run our government and their salaries, weather forecasters, and all the other services we take for granted every day which are provided by the government -- and which we pay for with out tax dollars?

If we're talking about cutting wasteful spending -- well, I've got plenty of ideas to help there and as I've said before, our government has gone amok with really stupid ideas to spend money and run up deficits.

On the other hand, I really don't expect my ideas to be taken seriously by conservatives because after all -- I am a liberal, so anymore I expect my ideas to be rejected outright by conservatives who probably don't even bother to read (let alone consider) my ideas.

Just calling things as I see them...

 

[UberLutheran]

Sure tax incomes. Just don't allow anyone on a government payroll to vote. Their #1 priority to increase taxes and give themselves raises.

Including secretaries, admins, the people who clean government buildings, the people who work in the national parks, and all the people who show up every day to do their jobs (and happen to work for the U.S. government)?

Oh: since those people work for the government, they shouldn't get to vote?

 

[TScott]

Sure tax incomes. Just don't allow anyone on a government payroll to vote. Their #1 priority to increase taxes and give themselves raises.

Yeah. Many of them are men in women in the military. They shouldn't be allowed to vote for the people who send them off to die...

 

[hippie]

Its fair to tax incomes. Its even fair to tax some more than others. The money needed to run the country has to come from somewhere.

You may consider it "fair" to tax incomes. I disagree.

You may find it "fair" to tax some more than others. I find that reprehensible and tantamont to legal thievery. It cannot be "fair" for someone to pay more than than an equiatable prorata share.

 

[dignitized]

There is question to whether or not this amendment was ever properly ratified.

 

[TScott]

I think it is fair for more wealthy people to pay a higher percentage than lower income people in income tax. In most cases it is the wealthy people who gain most of the benefits from government spending. Consider that the whole purpose of building a national military was to protect our commerce overseas. That was the original platform of the Republican Party.

Besides, one of the paramount reasons that a progressive income tax system was instituted in the first place was to redistribute the wealth. That is how it was sold to the masses.

 

[dignitized]

bread and circuses

 

[Rygel]

Yeah. Many of them are men in women in the military. They shouldn't be allowed to vote for the people who send them off to die...

LOL.

He who has the moneys buys the votes.

 

[MoonlessNight]

Our taxes are still low compared to most other developed, first world countries. Marginal tax rates in western Europe are usually 40-50% or more. (But they provide more social services--notably, health care.) Interestingly, many former communist countries in eatern Europe are going to a flat tax.

What other countries are doing should be irrelevent to good policy and right action. Certainly they can be used as examples of how effective certain policies are, but just the fact that they have higher or lower taxes shouldn't matter.