Clarification/Follow-up by tomder55 on 12/12/08 12:30 pm:
All taxation is theft but I like paved roads, sewerage disposal security

In our system the constitution stipulates that maintaining interstate road systems is a legitimate Federal Government responsibility . Waste treatment and management is a responsibity of local governments and only should become a matter of Federal intervention when issues of cross state water supply needs to be addressed .

Ours is a system designed on limited Federal authority and the more we drift away from that the worse off we are .

Clarification/Follow-up by Mathatmacoat on 12/12/08 9:52 pm:
Taxation takes many forms, whether it is federal income tax or local taxes it is all taxation, that is money demanded by the powerful to carry out their agenda in the community from the community. As I said I like paved roads, sewerage disposal, national security and someone has to pay but payment should be according to means, those with more to loose or gain should pay more. The systems as it exists works to take more from the middle class than it does from the rich and proportionately the poor pay much more. When did you ever see a poor man demand taxes, they are only represented by default in any form of government, by an aspiration that an elected representative should look to their interests, but this seldom happens.

Anyway, I have built my last aircraft carrier and I have enough tanks already so no more taxation

Clarification/Follow-up by tomder55 on 12/13/08 10:35 am:
I agree that "progressive income taxes " are regressive. I'd rather value added taxes across the board and eliminate income taxes. The net effect would be the rich still paying more taxes becuse they purchase more goods and services.

Clarification/Follow-up by Mathatmacoat on 12/15/08 12:41 am:
Tom
our experience is that the implementation of a broad based consumption tax has allowed personal income tax to be reduced. It has the advantage of catching up with the tax evaders and there were many more that we thought. I know people who closed their business when it was implemented, but you cannot get away from the reality that the rich have an ability to evade tax and therefore they have to be specifically targetted so that they pay their fair share.

I have however seen what they have done with VAT in the UK and their implementation is extreme and regressive.

Governments have now placed themselves in the position of lender of the last resort and this is a difficult position to be in