Taxes... I want your opinions.

Can anyone explain to me why many liberals think the wealthy aren't paying their fair share of taxes?  If you can support it with statistics, I'd much appreciate it.

Also...
1)  How will increasing Federal Income Tax help?  Would you increase it across the board or just for higher income earners?
2)  How will increasing taxes paid by large corporations help?  Keep in mind, corporation implies that it is owned by the people... taxes on corporations ultimately reduce their profits which in turn reduces value of the peoples' ownership in that company.
3)  What should be done with FICA (social security)?  Increase?  Leave the same?  Abolish it?

Guns? You have had federal agents invade your home and demand your taxes? Sorry, I'm trying to live in reality.

 

You can always move to the United Arab Emirates. Then again, they are pretty lax in their socialistic programs (you must work after retirement or they kick you out) and regulations (discrimination on the job is rampant) BUT you don't get taxed... :-D

 

Oh, beyond that, you're right... it's all third world countries without taxes. Hmmm... I wonder why that could possibly be?

Guns? You have had federal agents invade your home and demand your taxes? Sorry, I'm trying to live in reality.

That is excactly what will happen if you don't pay your taxes. The threat is there, you don't pay taxes, you will get arrested. Hell, that's how they got Al Capone off the street. He was a huge mob boss, responible for the death of many people, but he didn't pay taxes so he was arrested and hauled off to jail for that reason alone.

The high tax on the incremental earned dollar of the upper middle class is a major disincentive to productivity (I'm talking doctors, lawyers, architects here, not million dollar CEOs). Once I'm done paying my student loans, I'm considering going from full time to 60 or 75% time because by the time federal, state, local, social security and property taxes are removed there's very little difference in take home pay, so what's my incentive to work?  How is that sort of taxation plan good for society as a whole, when it's more cost effective for me to NOT work? It's not like I'm the only person to figure that out, either.

I think we DO need taxes and social systems because society has completely fractured. Before big government, people lived in tight knit communities for generations with ties of family, religion, etc. You could reliably expect help from your neighbors when your barn burned down.  Now? I doubt soliciting donations from "friends" on myspace would do the trick...

An interesting point about supporting your family...I'm single and in my thirties. It makes for an interesting discussion with boyfriends when they realize that I've basically obligated myself to support my mom in her impending retirement, which would take money away from the family that I might theoretically start with a potential suitor.

Ah, and then there's the disincentive for college educated high earning women to breed....

I do agree that the taxes on the middle classes need to be tiered differently.  Instead of taxing each additional dollar earned at a higher rate, there should either be a flat cap or a graduated tax so that there is more incentive to earn more. 

The same goes for the welfare and other social programs.  Instead of cutting the benefits on a dollar for dollar basis, the benefits should be phased out when someone starts to work.  Limit the amount of time on full welfare and ease them back into the working environment.  I'd also like to see benefits paid in the form of rent and child care and food stamps rather than cash which is much easier to misuse.

As a single working woman, I don't see any incentive to procreate.  If I were very poor or willing to work the system for handouts then it would make sense to pop out a few kids.  For me the cost of having a kid would be ridiculous since I would end up paying all childcare costs myself which would leave me with very little disposable income even though I make a reasonable salary.

The tax brackets and stuff don't make much sense to me; there's got to be a better way.  My hubby recently got an 8% raise, and he now takes home $23 less than he did previously, due to taxes.  WTF??  What's wrong with a flat tax - it seems like everyone would pay the same percentage based on their income, with perhaps the very low levels not having to pay anything (like now).  That seems to be the only fair way.