The Big Tax Question

So, if you listen to the Republicans in congress, you don’t raise taxes during a recession. During the Bush Administration, not only did they not raise taxes, they gave away huge tax breaks to the wealthiest Americans and spent like there was no tomorrow and never talked about the deficit. So, if you give the bank away when you’re not in a recession and then you refuse to raise taxes during a recession, when is it time to raise taxes? If the answer is “never” and the answer is always “never”, what is your actual goal? Increase the national debt? Starve the government to the point of irrelevance and ineffectiveness? Push your political agenda? All of the above?
Simple question. When is it appropriate to raise taxes?

 

When the government becomes too small. I will not be holding my breath.

 

Extremely myopic or shortsighted don't you think? Not only did you not or you were unable to answer a straight forward question because it would force you to rethink your ideology, you actually seem to believe that we should weaken our own government, the government of the most powerful nation on earth, to the point that unelected oligarchs would easily be able to take over the entire country without so much as a consideration for the Constitution, civil liberties, or we the people. And that's a better alternative to you?

 

Extremely myopic or shortsighted don't you think? I answered the question much more succinctly than you asked it. You honestly think that the strength of our nation is due to the size of our government? It is so big now the only place it can step is on its own toes. There is nothing in our Constitution that says it should dictate who sneezes and when, but that is what you and BO are trying to get to. Get the government out of the way and let the nation be the most powerful on earth rather than the government being the biggest on earth.

 

Yes I honestly believe the strength of our government has a lot to do with the strength of our country but that was not the question. The question was: When is the appropriate time to raise taxes? You said, when our government is too small. When exactly is that point reached? By what definition is the government too small? I seriously doubt that you’ve thought this through very well. All you can do is speak in generalities. Under what circumstances would you raise taxes...Specifically?

 

That is something I needn't worry about. I don't believe that you have probably bother to look at Coburn's budget proposal, but in most instances, he did not go far enough for me. I figure the odds of out liberals agreeing with a $9T cut is about as close to nil as you can get. Larger cuts are not worth even dreaming about.

 

I would be willing to answer your question if you would be willing to answer one of mine.
Agreed?

 

I was hoping, but not unrealistically, that you'd be able to answer a simply put question with a specific answer but alas... I know the Right wingers in this country see "the government" as a single amorphous entity through emotionally driven ideological glasses. Most couldn't even define what they mean by "the government". “The Government” is just a code phrase for all of their personal discontent and anger towards everything they can’t accept, anything that is different from themselves. Critical thinkers they are not.

The professional Right wing likes to say that young kids come to colleges and get brainwashed into believing liberal ideologies. In fact, what they actually learn isn’t liberal ideologies but rather they learn to think critically about issues such as this simple tax question. I can always tell when I am dealing with people that are not critical thinkers. They speak in generalities, they present everything in absolutes, and they often see issues in either black or white.

No insult intended but I do hope that someone with critical thinking abilities does chime in with an answer eventually. I’ll just have to wait I guess.

 

My guess is that you'll give a politically inspired evasive answer to my question and then ask a question with a false premise. But feel free to prove me wrong. Agreed!

PS Must go to lunch now. Back soon.

 

BTW, taxes are being increased every second of every day - two different ways. First off, every additional worker increases the tax base. Only when our population decreases or BO kills the economy will this stop (See Japan). Secondly, as inflation progresses, everything goes up including wages. That not only increases the taxes being paid, but with out scaled tax rates, the taxes actually increase significantly more than the inflation rate. Therefore, over the long run, out tax rates should decrease just to maintain the same percentages being collected.

 

Tax is not increased by inflation nor by more/less workers all that is increased/decreased is the amount of revenue raised (or lack of it in real terms) the tax rate will remain the same unless it is raised or lowerd by goverment
You could do well by getting your politicians to cut overseas aid (civil & millitary), cut back the size of your armed forces, cut your overseas bases to a minimum, simplefy your tax codes, stop all space exploration, erect trade barriers so you have to grow or produce your own products, cut your beuracracy by 50%, stop all goverment investment in any capital projects,cap all goverment salaries including those for politicians, make it a seriouse crime to not pay tax with the forfiture of all wordly chatles as the penelty, cut out all Goverment entitlements Now that should reduce not only your deficit but also the tax burden

 

Sorry, but the taxes are increased by more workers and the tax rate is absolutely increased by inflation. Just think it out. If everything cost 10 time what it does today, I would move up 2 brackets and most of those in the 50% not now paying taxes would be considered in the wealthy that BO wants to increase the taxes on so they pay their "fair share". Only if we had a flat tax rate with no fixed deductions would your statement be true. Although I will not pretend to be a tax expert, I assure you that is not even close to the case here.

 

So we're going with the usual deafening silence on a rather easy simple straight forward question again? When do we raise taxes anyway?

 

And that deafening silence will remain until you take your ear plugs out (and blinders off). I will not be holding my breath for this one either.

 

Spoken like the true ideologue you are. I wouldn't have expected anything less from you. Now, do we have any critical thinking people that want to answer a simple question?

 

You obviously don't like my answers, so what is your answer? Even better, what is BO's answer? He has been notably absent with any details.

Apparently, you are off onto your insults instead of constructive talk.

 

I believe you should typically cut spending and increase revenue when you can't pay your bills and are wallowing in debt. If it was a household...drop the cable tv and cell phone, buy off brand necessities and get a second job. If it is the government...de-fund the least needed programs and raise taxes (or at the very least allow temporary tax decreases to lapse like they were intended).

 

If you have a million workers and the tax rate is 20% then it remains at 20% even if you have 2 million or 1 unless the goverment changes the tax
If you have a tax band system dependant upon income then as a individual earns more or less they move up or down the tax bands but the tax bands remain constant at any given point in the overall band and will only change if the goverment changes them. any other change in what tax you pay is due to your individual earnings
Infaltion has nothing at all to do with the rate of tax paid all that inflation does is lower or increase the spending power of what you earn this is all simple economics

 

I guess I should have realized how lacking of logic you were from your chemistry argument. You may believe as you wish. BTW, I never ever said that the tax rate went up with more workers.

 

Sorry, but the taxes are increased by more workers and the tax rate is absolutely increased by inflation

Your words which I believe says that tax goes up with more workers now I have a degree in Economics do you?