I have heard that a large number of our citizens don’t have to pay income tax. In fact the poorest 43% of the populace pays no federal income tax, and many get payments from the government in addition. Polls have shown that these folks are not worried about the cost of a government-run healthcare system. It is the 57% who do pay taxes that are worried about the cost of things like Medicare, Social Security, and now government sponsored healthcare. Because of their fears, the great reforms that President Obama wants to give us all are being blocked.
When you look at it in this way – 43% pay nothing and 57% pay everything – the solution is obvious. There are too many people being taxed. Let’s just adjust the tax rates so that only 43% will pay income tax. This would make a lot of people happy and reduce the number of people who are worried about tax rates. There would be solid majorities in favor of healthcare benefits, universal preschool, fixed-rail mass transit, fixes for global warming, and the like.
There would also be solid majorities in favor of passing taxes to pay for these things. That would be helpful, because the income-tax rates on the wealthy would probably have to go back up to 700/0. Michael Moore has shown us why that is just. After all, the wealthy have more money, so asking them to pay a higher percentage of their income is only fair.
And certainly there would be much less bickering in Washington. There wouldn’t be so much partisan politics, and much good could be done in a short time.
Some naysayers might argue that there is a conflict of interest for people who don’t pay any taxes, yet vote in favor of programs to benefit themselves. Actually, there is no conflict; there is a confluence of interests – people voting in favor of things they want and need. Don’t we usually ask our loved ones, just before Christmas or birthdays, what things they’d most like to receive as gifts? How is this any different?
If you took the”conflict of interest” argument to its logical end, you would end up arguing that people who don’t pay any taxes shouldn’t be able to vote. But how un-American is that?
