The title says it all. Actually it doesn't so let's go on. Why do we have taxes any way? The dollar has not been connected to either gold or silver for many years.
This concept may be considered a bit extreme to some, but let's just think outside of the box for a minute. People, just like animals, are creatures of habit and many times we just go with the flow and walk down the same path that our ancestors have walked down previous to us. The majority of people, after all, are followers, and with such a complicated issue such as taxes (getting even more complicated every year) then surely generations of politicians prior to our "information age" existence must be right, right?
Why?
Let's explore that question; the question why? There may be a slight transition to deleting all taxes completely, but why wouldn't it be possible? It's not like it's attached to gold any more, or jewels or pewter or the things of the past that men and women considered gems, diamonds etc.Listen, when taxes were created, there was no paper money, it was all silver or gold, period. In France, Great Britain, Rome, in all of these countries tax collectors went around collecting silver and gold from the people, and sometimes food as well, you know, tangible things they could put in the kings coffers and build up wealth.
When countries went to war with other countries, they pillaged the villages for what? Not paper money, but gold, silver, jewels and food. They didn't rebuild those cities they pillaged. They kept the wealth for themselves and for their country. Selfish right?
Now that gold, silver, jewels and food are no longer collected as taxes (get where I am going?) to fill up the kings coffers as was done in thousands of years past, why are they still collecting taxes when it is only paper, and many times just an electronic transfer of, you guessed it, nothing. I say nothing because the government prints money on a regular basis anyway, and I'm sure there is some accountability there, although I've often read that the Federal Reserve has never been audited before (whether this is true, I have no clue). So what's the point anyway?
Why can't the government audit every city, state and county as to what their revenue intake has been traditionally and connect that to their infrastructure and population in a fair and reasonable fashion, then print up a year's worth of money and just transfer it into their bank accounts on a monthly basis so that they can meet their obligations, payroll and day to day expenses. If some cities are out of proportion with other cities for how much money is collected per each individual, just find some way to average it out over a period of say ten years. The government "must" allow for this information to be public so as to earn the trust of the people and other city and state governments. This could be accomplished by listing every city, county and state that receives money from the federal government showing exactly how much money they were given compared to their number of employees and their census population. Every year if special needs come up from some of the cities needing additional revenue, then have them write a grant to the federal government.
Everyone will have more money in their pockets and this should stimulate the economy right? Some might argue that this artificial surplus would create inflation, but all of the artificial printing hasn't seemed to do it yet has it? This transition could be accomplished over the course of several years so we could do as the Federal Reserve calls it, a "quantitative easing".
Again, let me repeat that taxes throughout history were gold and silver that actually went into the governments vaults and that they spoils of war were actually spoils of war that went in the conquering government's vaults and since none of this is any longer the case, it could be said that taxes are really just an outdated method of collecting nothing, and therefore does not serve its original purpose anymore.
Deleting them entirely could raise people's spirits, even out the playing field, uncomplicate people's lives and make it easier for all businesses to streamline their production and focus on their products instead of so much red tape. The IRS could probably be downsized considerably, transitioning them into new jobs in the private sector. Accountants currently in existence can help moderate the transition by auditing the IRS and making sure that all cities received proportional amounts of money and to insure that corruption did not take over the system by allowing "certain" cities to receive extra payouts. All figures allotted each city, county and state government monetary figures should be published for the public’s consumption with a easily understood summary of why some cities receive slightly more funds than others as well as how much money in grants they received and for what.
Roads and streets could still at least "partially" be funded by fuel taxes, although the fuel taxes could be lowered and eventually deleted over the course of several years as the system "evens" out.
This concept may be considered a bit extreme to some, but let's just think outside of the box for a minute. People, just like animals, are creatures of habit and many times we just go with the flow and walk down the same path that our ancestors have walked down previous to us. The majority of people, after all, are followers, and with such a complicated issue such as taxes (getting even more complicated every year) then surely generations of politicians prior to our "information age" existence must be right, right?
Why?
Let's explore that question; the question why? There may be a slight transition to deleting all taxes completely, but why wouldn't it be possible? It's not like it's attached to gold any more, or jewels or pewter or the things of the past that men and women considered gems, diamonds etc.Listen, when taxes were created, there was no paper money, it was all silver or gold, period. In France, Great Britain, Rome, in all of these countries tax collectors went around collecting silver and gold from the people, and sometimes food as well, you know, tangible things they could put in the kings coffers and build up wealth.
When countries went to war with other countries, they pillaged the villages for what? Not paper money, but gold, silver, jewels and food. They didn't rebuild those cities they pillaged. They kept the wealth for themselves and for their country. Selfish right?
Now that gold, silver, jewels and food are no longer collected as taxes (get where I am going?) to fill up the kings coffers as was done in thousands of years past, why are they still collecting taxes when it is only paper, and many times just an electronic transfer of, you guessed it, nothing. I say nothing because the government prints money on a regular basis anyway, and I'm sure there is some accountability there, although I've often read that the Federal Reserve has never been audited before (whether this is true, I have no clue). So what's the point anyway?
Why can't the government audit every city, state and county as to what their revenue intake has been traditionally and connect that to their infrastructure and population in a fair and reasonable fashion, then print up a year's worth of money and just transfer it into their bank accounts on a monthly basis so that they can meet their obligations, payroll and day to day expenses. If some cities are out of proportion with other cities for how much money is collected per each individual, just find some way to average it out over a period of say ten years. The government "must" allow for this information to be public so as to earn the trust of the people and other city and state governments. This could be accomplished by listing every city, county and state that receives money from the federal government showing exactly how much money they were given compared to their number of employees and their census population. Every year if special needs come up from some of the cities needing additional revenue, then have them write a grant to the federal government.
Everyone will have more money in their pockets and this should stimulate the economy right? Some might argue that this artificial surplus would create inflation, but all of the artificial printing hasn't seemed to do it yet has it? This transition could be accomplished over the course of several years so we could do as the Federal Reserve calls it, a "quantitative easing".
Again, let me repeat that taxes throughout history were gold and silver that actually went into the governments vaults and that they spoils of war were actually spoils of war that went in the conquering government's vaults and since none of this is any longer the case, it could be said that taxes are really just an outdated method of collecting nothing, and therefore does not serve its original purpose anymore.
Deleting them entirely could raise people's spirits, even out the playing field, uncomplicate people's lives and make it easier for all businesses to streamline their production and focus on their products instead of so much red tape. The IRS could probably be downsized considerably, transitioning them into new jobs in the private sector. Accountants currently in existence can help moderate the transition by auditing the IRS and making sure that all cities received proportional amounts of money and to insure that corruption did not take over the system by allowing "certain" cities to receive extra payouts. All figures allotted each city, county and state government monetary figures should be published for the public’s consumption with a easily understood summary of why some cities receive slightly more funds than others as well as how much money in grants they received and for what.
Roads and streets could still at least "partially" be funded by fuel taxes, although the fuel taxes could be lowered and eventually deleted over the course of several years as the system "evens" out.
I am just thinking outside of the box. I just think this idea could be explored. It is a concept that would be hard for most people to wrap their minds around because there have always been taxes, but life is complicated enough and the tax codes are just so complicated. Doing this could allow us to spread our wings and focus on the more important things of life. I realize that one of the complications may be how this would affect the world markets, and to be honest, I do not know what percentage of taxes other countries pay out, but the concept could be a global concept as long as the entire world is not connected to precious metals with their currency any longer.
Hey Dewayne, I love the idea of eliminating taxes... they are, after all, theft, which is a violation of the 8th commandment. We don't put images of living leaders on our coins or money so that rendering to Caesar that which has his name and image on it won't apply. We the People are the government, anyway.
ReplyDeleteWhy it won't work: The inflation tax already robs us blind and doesn't even let us know how much value is being taken from our money. The most important FED transactions, by law, can't be audited, and FED leaders don't report on the total amount of money being created/in circulation, so we don't know how much new money exists, making it impossible to know how much value is being taxed away. We don't elect representatives to this body, so we are for all intents and purposes being taxed with no representation.
Not to mention the fact that fiat money always fails. QE3 is on the way, and inflation will jump again. We're on the track to hyperinflation. Giving this unelected body the ability to tax us at will is just not going to work.
What might work: User fees. Eliminate taxes and charge fees for the public services we use. We currently have a gas tax for roads. Instead, we could implement a user fee for the type of vehicle. The more likely a vehicle is to cause wear, the more fee is paid. Those on foot and bicycles pay nothing, motorcycles a small fee, all the way up to heavy equipment haulers, who would pay the most. Buy a decal, slap it on your tag and you're done.
That's just one example, and probably not the best, but it is a way we could fund what we expect from government without having to steal. If you want to use something, you pay for it.
There will still be a need for revenue collection (for national defense, etc.) but we should just use the original Constitutional tax plan. The Constitution, until my grandfather was almost 30, stated that all taxes should be apportioned. There was no income tax. The Supreme Court ruled an income tax unconstitutional.
If it is something that everyone will benefit from, everyone should pay the same share. Basically, if government needs another billion dollars or so for national defense, all the adults would pay between 5 and 10 bucks.
Beyond the hypothetical, there should be no income tax at all. Income taxes punish those who produce and attempt to do better for themselves. The IRS should be eliminated immediately. Not only is it the 2nd plank of the Communist Manifesto, it's just a really bad way to collect money.
I meant to address this in my first comment:
ReplyDeleteYou said, "Some might argue that this artificial surplus would create inflation, but all of the artificial printing hasn't seemed to do it yet has it?"
Well, considering that since we left Bretton-Woods in 1971 the price in dollars of many commodities has gone up 1000%-4000%, Yes, it has.
I also wanted to say that I like your call for transparency in government at all levels. I agree with that, and think we should start with the Federal Reserve System.