The Fair Tax

[Morton Thomson Jr.]

The Fair Tax

And what’s wrong with it!

Here are the main problems I have with the proposed Fair Tax.

1. Those in favor of passing this legislation claim that it first requires that we repeal the 16^th Amendment. This is a false notion fueled by ignorance of the law. The Supreme Court said in Stanton Vs. Baltic Mining Co., 240 US 112 (1916), that the 16^th Amendment does not change Article I, section 8 of the Constitution, and “confers no new power of taxation.” Therefore repealing the amendment will change nothing and will not, in and of itself, eliminate the IRS. Therefore, even if one could successfully repeal the 16^th Amendment, the proposal is doomed from the onset. Other Supreme Court case law as in Brushaber Vs. Union Pacific Railroad Co., 240 US 1 (1916),  is being used as the legal backdrop for the authority to continue the fraud known as the Income Tax, so repealing the 16^th Amendment will not be enough.
2. The proposed sales tax claims to be “revenue neutral”. This means that it will do nothing to change the amount of money going into the coffers of the federal government. This does absolutely nothing to make the feds more fiscally responsible, which is what they claim to be trying to do with the Fair Tax proposal.
3. Because this is a sales tax and is “revenue neutral”, it’s too easy for everyone to lose track of how and where they are taxed, thus allowing the government and the public at large to easily forget that there is a tax being levied in the first place, and;
4. This makes it too easy for the tax to be increased by fiat, any time they feel like it. And don’t tell me that it will have to be voted on, because when you rob Peter to pay Paul, you can always count on the support of Paul. In other words, those constituents who benefit from government giveaways will always vote in favor of increased taxes. Eliminating giveaway programs is first and foremost at the heart of the problem, not eliminating the IRS. And:
5. Wasteful spending by the fed will not change just because the money comes from a different place. Reform needs to be based in correcting the problems that we know exist now, not in changing the source of revenue.
6. In addition, there must be serious reform of the corrupt cycle known as lobbying. When a politician can be persuaded to vote in favor of passing a law for a particular corporation to receive money based on the amount of begging and influence peddling they engage in, this is a problem. The Fair Tax will not change this.
7. Also, the government is in the habit of ignoring the will of the people in the first place, so what will stop them from simply printing more fiat money any time they feel like it? The answer is NOTHING. And:
8. Last but not least is the fact that taxes, like the economy, trickle down to the bottom. When corporations are taxed, industry wide, they do not actually pay the taxes directly. They either move the operation to a tax free environment, thereby eliminating American jobs, or they simply increase the cost of the end product to cover the increased taxes and the CONSUMER pays a higher price at the end of the line. So poor people end up paying the increased taxes levied against the “evil rich and competition will not keep corporations from raising the price of their products, due to the fact that the regulation or tax that increases those costs for a product are levied against an entire industry all at once, in order to make it “fair”. Some perfect examples are cigarettes, alcohol, beef, milk, etc. You name it, the fed has found a way to tax or regulate it, INDUSTRY WIDE. They don’t just tax or regulate one company, they tax them ALL, and the CONSUMER PAYS THE BILL. The Fair Tax WILL NOT CHANGE THAT. That’s trickle down economics 101. If you need proof, check the latest tax returns filed by Goldman Sachs, AIG, etc. You’ll see that not only were they able to differ an income tax liability of TWO BILLION DOLLARS by shipping jobs over-seas, they actually qualified for a TAX CREDIT of over ONE BILLION DOLLARS MORE, on top of that! We must eliminate the IRS AND STOP THE PAYMENTS. Not change the way they get the wealth.

In conclusion,

It is safe to say that the Fair Tax will do ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to change what’s wrong with our federal government in terms of how they borrow and spend and print new FRN’s (Quantitative Easing), anytime the Fed says it’s the right thing to do. Not to mention the Fair Tax does nothing to address the fact that they routinely ignore requests now for freedom of information and Redress of Grievances in regard to taxes and other issues. The fed will not change their attitude until “We The People” force them to.

Stop the "voluntary compliance" with the misapplication of the current Internal Re-Venue Codes. This would immediately cripple the fed and wake them up. The Fair Tax WILL NOT! Instead, it will bury the issue of an overblown and corrupt government and put it on the back burner of the American conscience. People will continue to fund a corrupt, wasteful, SOCIALIST government. That’s why I don’t like the Fair Tax.

Comments?

[Bob Podolsky]

This is a really good article - AND - it seems to be missing one important point:The income tax imposed by the IRS can be "evaded" by anyone brave enough or foolish enough to do so. As a sales tax, however, the "Fair Tax" cannot be resisted/evaded because every retailer collecting the tax will refuse to sell to those who refuse to pay the tax - in order, of course, to keep their business licenses.

The existence of such ubiquitous tax collectors makes the collecting agency almost invisible to the consumer. We are fools if we think there's anything "fair" about this or any other tax.

Since "rights" can only be delegated (even theoretically) by those who actually have them as individuals, where do "legislators" get the right to take our resources away from us at gunpoint? Or to insist that every retailer in the country functions as a tax collector? I suggest that the entire political process exists only to fool us into thinking that we voters have and can delegate the right to rob our neighbors. And if we don't, as I would assert, how can we justify ANY form of government - including the ever-popular republic espoused by this country's "founders".

For a realistically feasible alternative to government, see https://www.titanians.org/ethics-law-government.

[Shavager]

The FAIR Tax is built into consumer prices just as the local, state, federal taxes are now--there's NO DIFFERENCE THERE--the MECHANISM IS WHAT WILL CHANGE--NO more income taxes. ALL TAXES WILL BE COLLECTED AT SALES OR SERVICE EXCHANGE.  Your barber, yard man, plumber will collect those taxes within their bill for services rendered. Your grocer, pharmacist, Walmart or Macy's cashier will collect it for your purchases--they collect them NOW, there's NO DIFFERENCE but the mechanism the Feds would be able to use to collect them--NO MORE INCOME TAXES on the production of workers in this country, NO MORE HIDING INCOME--since what you spend is what YOU pay--drug dealers who NEVER report income will PAY TAXES, Billionaires who stash money overseas would be bringing it home where would be a financial windfall for banks, financial markets as loans, business expansions, startups and JOBS.  ANYBODY who participates in the U.S. economy would be paying FAIR SHARE OF TAXES--NOBODY would be exempt from participating in the economic system. There would be NO incentive to hide income since the Feds would have NO need to know your income levels. Those who SPEND the most, PAY the most in taxes unlike the current system which allows all kinds of exemptions, encourages hiding income. WHY would you chance hiding income under the current system and paying the price when you would have NO reason to even tell the Feds how much money you have or made, what you do with it. IF you think hiding is a good idea--just ask Wesley Snipes, Willie Nelson and some others how that worked out.

[Shavager]

WE won't ever be exempt from taxes--it's a way of life. This is NOT the small government, small number of citizens that founded this country back when the Founders had the unique knowledge and skills to set up this Constitutional experiment that gave the CITIZENS power instead of government or a dicatator, but they gave us the framework that has been the most successful in man's history.  It is the abject disregard for it that has brought all these economic, financial, national problems.  But 200 professional economists spent time trying to devise a tax system that would REQUIRE everybody to pair FAIR share of taxes IF they participate in our nation, a system that's infinitely better than penalizing a worker's production, penalizing their families for hard work or working more hours than others and penalizing profits that companies and corporations make resulting in passing on those taxes to the customers/consumers they serve.

[Bob Podolsky]

"WE won't ever be exempt from taxes--it's a way of life."

Your above assertion can be shown to be the logical equivalent of "We will always have taxes because we've always had taxes." This point of view only makes sense if you assume that one class of people has the right and "authority" to enslave another - a claim that I would debate with vigor. Are you a proponent of the "divine right of kings"?

Check out "Why Taxation is Slavery" or read Larken Rose's book, "The Most Dangerous Superstition" for some solid education on this subject.

[Shavager]

Bob, this is NOT the same country that built roads and bridges BEFORE income taxes--this is a HUGE country now, the system for financing the operation of and the costs of supporting an ever growing federal bureaucracy has been in place for over a 100 years--I don't care IF your name is Ronald Reagan and they just cloned you--YOU ain't gonna get rid of taxes, that IS a fact of life. We are a different country, the feds have put in place structures to support the infirm and ill who can't work, they're also paying deadbeats to be deadbeats at the expense of the taxpayers.  DC overspends in every administration, especially under DemocRAT administrations, our problem is REVENUES VERSUS SPENDING, Obama has nearly DOUBLED the National DEBT in just a term an a half. But it doesn't matter IF you Balance the Budget, Congress will still need revenues to operate and pay debts incurred--the Founding Fathers understood this, BUT they recommended a "FAIR" Tax or tax on commerce between states, citizens and foreign trade.  The U.S. PUNISHES hard work and those willing to work and work harder than others.  The FAIR Tax would replace the mechanism of taxes--allowing workers to keep ALL their income, except for local/state taxes, and the American citizen can control his/her personal taxes by controlling their own spending habits. The wealthy will spend more than others--they will pay more than everybody else.

[Rene Stover]

Taxes will eventually end, but only by a bloody national revolution, and it is coming fast, as a matter of fact, the government is pushing it upon us!

[Morton Thomson Jr.]

You're right Rene,

If you listened to The Campaign Finance Committee debating the destruction of the First Amendment, you would have heard the Democ-Rats with the comedian Al Franken at the head, pretending that the crap coming out of their mouths actually made some sort of sense.

They tried to say that corporations are not people and money is not speech. Naturally, Ted Cruz with his brilliant rebuttal shot them down, but they seemed undeterred. These people are going to push us too far and it's going to come back to bite them in the ass. In fact I'm going to bite them in the ass. I've had about all the crap I can take. Enough is Enough!

I have to hold my tongue when I think about the attitude these Democ-Rats have. They are intentionally trying to destroy any hint of freedom or freedom loving people. It's time to clean the barn, empty it out and start over with a fresh batch of hay. If not we can burn it to the ground. Either way I no longer care how it gets done. I only know it must be done soon.

If we let Hillary become President, ITS OVER!

[Leticia Gascoin-Ruffie]

This all sounds like V.A.T. to me (Value Added Tax like they have in Europe. The cost of everything goes up dramatically but because it is not added at the cash register, they don't know how much tax they are paying.;; sometimes up to 33%)

[Shavager]

A "value added tax" is IN ADDITION to sales taxes--the FAIR TAX IS a tax on commerce and services--IT IS NOT ADDED TO ANY TAXES ALREADY ON THOSE ITEMS--it REPLACES the income tax system that allows billionaires to hide money in offshore international accounts, allows drug dealers to make millions without ever paying any income taxes since they don't report income--there will always be those who try to get around paying any taxes--but COMPANIES, STORES, PROFESSIONALS who provide services will NOT jeopardize their own success/profits by not reporting or collecting taxes from those they deal with. EVERYBODY will be required to pay some taxes unlike the current system which the bottom 10% percent don't pay any and the top 10% pay 75% of all income taxes.  There is NO hiding Fair taxes within the cost of the items--they will be included in ALL new items at the time of sale  or receipt of professional service and easily recognized for the taxes they are.  NO need for any IRS audits of your income because YOU won't be reporting income any more--no need of Feds to know.  They will just need to make sure each state collects the correct taxes.  This is the fairest system that eliminates income taxes and IRS, NOBODY gets by without some "SKIN IN THE GAME" and NO more arguments over who pays their fair share and doesn't.

[Rene Stover]

The so-called fair tax if implemented will start at 23%, but continue to grow, until it does something the Income Tax could not. it will destroy the economy, and all purchasing power, and it will be a tax we cannot get rid of, unlike the income tax, which is not legal to begin with it will be a legal and progressive tax.

[Morton Thomson Jr.]

Hey Bob,

I like this even better. Why don't we send people to it?

http://www.titanians.org/why-taxation-is-slavery/

[Bob Podolsky]

Hi Morton. Thanks for the complement. I agree: Let's spread the word - http://www.titanians.org/why-taxation-is-slavery/