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1% Tax Rate?

Discussion in 'Political Debate & Discussion' started by th1bill, Dec 8, 2011.

  1. th1bill

    th1bill Well-Known Member
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    I post the following for information only. If you wish to debate this, please, contact the left wing CNN. I´m still in shock that they told the truth. Most Americans have yet to wake up and realize that the flat tax will help and harm everybody. Being a patriot I push for it because it will be good for the nation and balance the load all around.Now, the article.

    In case you haven't heard, President Obama wants the wealthiest to pay more in taxes.
    Noting the rise in income inequality in recent years and the need to reform the U.S. tax system, the president on Tuesday said that some of the wealthiest in America pay far less in federal taxes as a percentage of their income than many lower down the income scale.
    "A quarter of all millionaires now pay lower tax rates than millions of middle-class households. Some billionaires have a tax rate as low as 1%," Obama said in a speech in Kansas.
    Here are some of the facts behind the claim: In 2006 roughly 25% of those with adjusted gross incomes over $1 million paid a smaller portion of their income in federal taxes -- income, payroll and corporate -- than 10% of those with AGIs below $100,000, according to a recent study from the Congressional Research Service.
    As for the president's assertion that some billionaires have a tax rate as low as 1%, Roberton Williams, a senior fellow at the Tax Policy Center, said that it's definitely possible but hard to verify.
    Buffett rule could hit 25% of the very rich
    "Billionaires are still rare enough that we cannot get data for them without running afoul of privacy rules," he said.
    But for a lot of reasons, Chris Bergin, president and publisher of Tax Analysts, said, "It is certainly not implausible."
    Last year, 4,000 households with incomes over a million dollars owed no federal income tax whatsoever, according to Tax Policy Center estimates.
    What's more, of the top 400 federal tax returns with the highest adjusted gross incomes in 2008, 30 had an effective tax rate of less than 10%, noted Mark Luscombe, the principal federal tax analyst at CCH.
    A big reason is that a large percentage of wealthy Americans' income comes from investments, which are often taxed at lower rates than ordinary wages and salaries.
    What's more, some perfectly legal tax code provisions allow taxpayers to reduce their investment tax bills even further.
    Of course, the wealthy aren't the only ones who enjoy what Obama refers to as "loopholes and shelters." Anyone who deducts their mortgage interest, saves money for retirement, realizes a capital gain or loss, or gets health insurance from their employer is enjoying a tax break.
    Bush tax cuts: The real end game
    The difference is that the rich use a broader array of tax-preferred investments, such as partnerships. Or they may invest in dividend-paying foreign stocks and can claim a foreign tax credit for the tax withheld from them by the foreign government.
    Typically, too, the wealthiest are more likely to be retired or self-employed and are in a position to make big charitable contributions -- all of which come with distinct tax advantages.
    And the wealthy can afford to be more risk-averse and park a lot of money in bonds, often tax-free.
    To Obama, the fact that the wealthy can so whittle down their tax burden is "the height of unfairness."
    Fairness in the tax code is a real issue, but there is no absolute answer to the question "what's fair?" And that's one reason why reforming the tax code will be a tough fight.
    Earlier this fall, Obama proposed what he dubbed the Buffett Rule, named after billionaire investor Warren Buffett, who has urged Congress to tax the rich more.
    The Buffett Rule is intended as a guiding principle for tax reform to ensure that millionaires pay a higher percentage of their income in federal taxes than those who make less.
    That may not be as easy to implement as it sounds.
    But one thing is a sure bet: The president will be sounding the theme many times over in his re-election bid.
    View this article on CNNMoney
     
  2. billwald

    billwald New Member

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    Most flat tax and other schemes will require that EVERY person be registered with the government and requires an IRS. Only the electronic transfer tax doesn't.
     
  3. th1bill

    th1bill Well-Known Member
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    Iḿ sorry, it is now illegal to not be registered so... your point?
     
  4. freeatlast

    freeatlast New Member

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    Bill since when did the government start worrying about what is leagal and what is not?
    I am against raising taxes on the wealthy. I am all for doing away with all deductions and breaks and everyone paying a flat percentage.
     
  5. Salty

    Salty 20,000 Posts Club
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    Does that also include all non-profits, ie churches?


    A low - less than 1% tax will be fair for everyone - including the 50% who currently pay NO income tax ( and don't confuse tax withholding with actually paying taxes)
     
  6. freeatlast

    freeatlast New Member

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    I was speaking of personal income tax.
     
  7. th1bill

    th1bill Well-Known Member
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    thankyou Free, we are on the same page.
     
  8. th1bill

    th1bill Well-Known Member
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    I, also, do not include the Church! Once I pay the tax on my income, the tax is paid! To then tax my contributions to anything or anybody needs to become illegal.
     
  9. billwald

    billwald New Member

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    A 1% income tax without a large death tax will GUARANTEE that the top 10% will end up owning 90% of everything worth owning and the rest of us will be their serfs.
     
  10. billwald

    billwald New Member

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    >I, also, do not include the Church! Once I pay the tax on my income, the tax is paid! To then tax my contributions to anything or anybody needs to become illegal.

    Say a church denomination had bought Chrysler instead of a private company. Should Chrysler, then, come under "Church" tax law?
     
  11. OldRegular

    OldRegular Well-Known Member

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    Is there any tax that is fair. In principle the answer must be NO. There is nothing fair about any government taking money that a person has earned.

    In reality if there is to be a government there must be taxes. Therefore, any tax system must be as fair as possible. It seems to me that it is grossly unfair to tax different income at different rates. For example earned income [salary and wages] can be taxed at a maximum rate of 35%. For 2010, the maximum capital gains rate for most people is 15%. That is grossly unfair and is probably the reason Warren Buffett said he paid taxes at a lower rate than his secretary.

    Perhaps the most egregious example of unfair taxation is presented in the following excerpt from a Forbes article By Robert Lenzner.

    "The Top 0.1% Of The Nation Earn Half Of All Capital Gains | Story
    November 20, 2011
    Income and wealth disparities become even more absurd if we look at the top 0.1% of the nation's earners-- rather than the more common 1%. The top 0.1%-- about 315,000 individuals out of 315 million-- are making about half of all capital gains on the sale of shares or property after 1 year; and these capital gains make up 60% of the income made by the Forbes 400."
    [http://news.yahoo.com/top-0-1-nation-earn-half-capital-gains-172647859.html]

    Income is income from whatever source and should be taxed at the same rate whether the rate is progressive or not.
     
  12. Salty

    Salty 20,000 Posts Club
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    and this is the reason I support the automatic tax - everyone pays the same (very low) tax rate.

    The other big problem is overspending!!!
    We could easily cut over half of govt programs. Unfortunately, we cannot do that overnight - but over a period of 10 years - we need to see that happen.
     
  13. carpro

    carpro Well-Known Member
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    I can certainly tell you one thing that's not fair...over 50% of tax filers pay no taxes at all. And that percentage is growing every year.

    It's a nanny state in the making and fairness has nothing at all to do with it.
     
  14. Salty

    Salty 20,000 Posts Club
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    That 50% do not pay INCOME tax.
    However, I will admit they do pay other taxes. ie Excise, sales, phone, import - ect... :tonofbricks:
     
  15. carpro

    carpro Well-Known Member
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    I believe "income tax" is the focus of the OP and it is what primarily supports the national government. We have more takers than contributors. That's a recipe for disaster. An I repeat, "fairness" has nothing to do with it.

    I recall a certain politician said that we all have to have "some skin in the game". I believe that, but he was lying. He doesn't. Never has. Never will.
     
  16. Salty

    Salty 20,000 Posts Club
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    I agree, but remember there are Liberals reading this, and we must do their thinking....

    Here is a chart on the breakdown of taxes:
     
  17. FR7 Baptist

    FR7 Baptist Active Member

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    Salty, would your 1% electronic tax apply to payments made by share draft?
     
  18. carpro

    carpro Well-Known Member
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    Good point! :thumbs:
     
  19. th1bill

    th1bill Well-Known Member
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    Bill,
    Iḿ lost to define this post, are you being facetious? If any church or group of xhurches buys any corporation they are no longer a church but are a business and become taxable and out of the will of God!
     
  20. th1bill

    th1bill Well-Known Member
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    Carpo,
    Salty has made all valid points. An example of a fair tax is the rejected 9/9/9% rate. At the moment, people in Texas pay around 63% taxes without a Stae Income Tax and people in other states are paying, I believe better than 70%. I have not followed up since the seventies but at that time it cost about 6 cents to grow and produce a loaf of bread that sold for 99 cents. All of the excess 91 cents was hidden taxes that were, all the way down the process, retaxed! Then they were taxed again in the State of Texas at about 8%, depending on the county one lived in.

    So it i that even the poor, with Ibcome Tax dree money are paying about fifty per cent taxes. It ain´t fair at all! With the flat tax all the hidden taxes are abolished!
     
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