Americans for Fair Taxation

[decouverte d Elbe]

Ok, I'm reading this now..

http://geekpolitics.com/10-pros-and-cons-of-the-fair-tax/

Now what do you think of this comment? He makes some valid points, because we still have a lot of bills to pay, and it seems like the wealthiest will pay less taxes, so how do we pay for the wars, and the DOD? I admit that the Fair Tax does take a whole new radical approach. Not sure though if that "priced in" 22% would work like that either, and if our goods would cost the same..and the lowest wage earners already have these exemptions and entitlements ... I'm going to try to stay a little more objective, and read some more, while you find a moderator...it is interesting to read about and learn



A reader's Comment to above article
I’ve read a number of articles on the so called “fair tax” and it seems to me that there is an aggresive and vocal minority putting the most optimistic spin on a plan that would actually amount to a tax INCREASE for anyone making $25,000 to $1,000,000. That’s me and almost everyone I know. Also, it doesn’t address current deficit spending and where Clinton did balance budgets - Pres. Bush reversed course which makes this all the harder to implement. Deficit spending is not going away under Pres. Obama either. Then you have the expansion of taxable goods and services which would include rent, legal fees, utilities, Doctor bills, etc. under the fair tax’s proposed 100% base. Tough sale.

It’s an interesting theory that I was initially in favor of but upon further inspection it’s a free lunch for the poor and a handout to the super rich - all of whom will be able to live tax free as a percentage of their income. Also, never underestimate the ability of citizens to avoid paying taxes! Eventually people will end up paying a higher sales tax rate to make up for the shortfalls in avoided taxes and optimistic spending projections that may not occur. Given the roller coaster ride the nation has been on a the fuel pump in the last 12 months the pain at the pump would’ve been made worse by the massive tax increase the fair tax would impose on consumers. There is too much instabity in the market for the fair tax to work. I think for any fair tax plan to really work it would still need to include some income tax for the highest incomes and some market controls that most would rightly oppose out of principle. Like the saying goes, if it sounds too good to be true it probably is.