Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Tax Party Appetizer

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5 comments:

Sean said...

From hotair.com

No crudités or finger sandwiches for this party; just raw red meat, still on the bone, courtesy of the Cato Institute. Consider it a companion piece to Reason TV’s “unpatriotic” critique last week of our progressive income tax, a point echoed in yesterday’s Journal by Ari Fleischer:

According to the CBO, those who made less than $44,300 in 2001 — 60% of the country — paid a paltry 3.3% of all income taxes. By 2005, almost all of them were excused from paying any income tax. They paid less than 1% of the income tax burden. Their share shrank even when taking into account the payroll tax. In 2001, the bottom 60% paid 16.3% of all taxes; by 2005 their share was down to 14.3%. All the while, this large group of voters made 25.8% of the nation’s income.
When you make almost 26% of the income and you pay only 0.6% of the income tax, that’s a good deal, courtesy of those who do pay income taxes. For the bottom 40%, the redistribution deal is even better. In 2001, these 43 million Americans, who earn less than $30,500, made 13.5% of the nation’s income but paid no income tax. Instead, they received checks from their taxpaying neighbors worth $16.3 billion. By 2005, those checks totaled $33.3 billion.
Gallup reports today that 48 percent of the public thinks their tax rate is “about right.” Given Fleischer’s numbers, I’ll bet.

April 15, 2009 at 10:48 PM
Doug said...

An individual making $44,300 is not excused from paying income tax, no way unless they have lot's of shelter and if they have that much shelter chances are they're making more than any 45 grand. Now a family making $44,500 may be close but this distinction is not made here.
Looking at these statistics another way shows us that 60% of the country's wage earners earn 26% of the nations income or, 40% of the country's wage earners make 74% of the nations income. Just me but I'd much rather be in the latter category.
The Earned Income Credit which is referenced here allows those bottom wage earners, the working poor, to receive additional money from the Fed even though they pay no net income tax. This program was expanded under the Nixon administration. The idea behind that is it's better to have people work for next to nothing than to languish on the public dole.
Few people realize that the current Federal Income tax was started (under the auspices of the 16th Constitutional amendment) to fund US involvement in WWI. Funny how once Uncle San starts a tax he doesn't want to give it up.
It is not my intent to denigrate these tax protests that are now happening. More power to you and your fellow protesters. Nobody likes taxes. That's why they're called taxes.
Class based squabbling as to who is and isn't paying their fair share misses the point and plays right into the hands of the power structure. Inter-class finger pointing makes it that much less likely that the anger be directed at the real culprit. A bloated & gluttonous steam engine engineered by two political parties intent primarily on gaining and maintaining power over the masses.

April 16, 2009 at 2:03 AM
Sean said...

(here I go again)

Everyone must pay some taxes or no one should. The reason wages are the low end are so low the workers are not taxed and because of programs like the earned income credit. Tax everyone and they will demand more. Employers will have o no choice but to pay more. Lower the taxes on the top to make up the difference.

Money passing through the filter of government means less efficiency and more waste. Pay workers at the point of service, not through back-hand tax-based redistribution. This makes slaves of us all.

April 16, 2009 at 5:32 AM
Doug said...

So how was the party? Were there a lot of people there? And what the hell is a crudite?

April 16, 2009 at 6:19 AM
Ric Larson said...

Anyone watching Newt tonight with Sean Hannity? He rocks!

April 16, 2009 at 11:06 AM

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