Quote:
Originally posted by Mmmm, Burger (C.J.)
Neither ineluctably follows. They need not be regressive, and they certainly need not be confiscatory, any more than current taxes are at least.
Please be sure to recognize the distinction between the concept of a consumption tax and the implementation of one type of consumption tax, known as a sales tax. The latter is the consumption based alternative of a the flat income tax, which should help to highlight that the problem lies not in the basis for the tax but rather its implementation.
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Dissent. Any form of consumption tax removes from the tax base all accretions to wealth which are saved rather than spent. Tus, by definition, the tax burden falls more heavily on those who can least afford to shoulder it. You can have a threshhold before the tax kicks in, you can exempt essentials like food, rent, etc., but ultimately, the tax burden for the nation will be borne more heavily by those who can least afford it.
One can argue about the income tax being a disincentive to earn more, which is an argument I've never bought, or being too high or too low. What cannot be denied, however, is that an income tax at least place the tax burden on increases in wealth, rather than depletion of wealth.
