There's a lot of talk on Capitol Hill of tax cuts. Tax cuts for the wealthy. Tax cuts for the poor. But why all these cuts? What makes the US government think that its doing so well to allow tax cuts?It all comes down to representative government. See, the Uncle Same has a huge hole in his wallet; however, he's compelled to advocate tax cuts only because his officeholders, the Representatives, are forced to...by their bosses, the voters. No one wants to pay more taxes, even if its the right thing to do.
Taxes help pay for a lot of things. They help pay for wars (we're in two of them). They help pay for education (the Fed. gives grants to school disticts that are suffering...ie NYC, Chicago and Newark). And moreover, they can help refill our deficit, so we could pay more from our pocket. Be more stable.
But ever since Reagan and his whole "tax cuts for the wealthy" strategy mounted on his "trickle-down" philosophy, the US government has succumbed to this illusion that tax cuts are the right thing to do. In truth, we mustn't be forced to contradict ourselves like this. If we want things to happen in Washington and overseas, its about time we buck up and raise taxes.
Alas, this is a recession. People are poor and unemployed. We can't possibly ask them to pay more taxes. This would not only be detrimental to their personal day-to-day lives, but also it will demolish our GDP and possibly our economy. But some are rich and well-off, they can afford to pay higher taxes. And they should pay these taxes. After all, isn't it because of our system, the system that they will support with these tax jumps, that they (the wealthy) became rich?
Moreover, some people like to criticize this idea, saying that this "ideal" of richer people paying more taxes is theft. But, here's the truth: with greater power (and money is power) comes greater responsibility. It is the responsibility of those who are better off to help our government and its deficit. Taxes are the duty of the people. Scaled taxes are the duty of the State.
2 comments:
The answer depends on what you believe. If you believe that governments can allocate resources more efficiently or wisely than individuals and corporations, then the obvious conclusion is that higher taxes are better than lower taxes.
Some might argue that the rich should pay a higher burden than others because they don't need most of their money. However, this argument ultimately breaks down to the belief that governments are better spenders of wealth. I would argue that if governments spend money better than the rich -- who have more ability than the poor to make more informed investments -- then government also probably spends money better than the middle class and the poor. In consequence, then, taxation should be 100%.
Of course I have over-simplified, but for those who support taxing the rich more, can you suggest in what areas, if any, personal spending decisions will be superior to allocation by politicians?
Simply because Republicans cannot admit their theories are full of Shit!
Post a Comment