Posted on 12/05/2011 8:45:56 PM PST by NaturalBornConservative
Views from the Centre-Right -
By: Larry Walker, Jr. -
“Collecting more taxes than is absolutely necessary is legalized robbery.” ~Calvin Coolidge -
In philosophy, especially that of Aristotle, the golden mean is the desirable middle between two extremes, one of excess and the other of deficiency. The following links and brief excerpts are from 34 articles on income tax reform, written between November 2009 and December 2011. Authored with an independent fiscal conservative twist, the objective has been to define the golden mean, with respect to income taxes. If something catches your eye, pore over it. And if you are able to apprehend and digest them all, consider yourself wise, and fit for the impending battle. For we all know what’s coming, and we should also realize what happens when a government operates on the wrong side of the road.
Endless Stimulus | Payroll Tax Cut - Dec 01, 2011
Since Social Security and Medicare taxes are collected in order to realize future benefits, why would the federal government choose to refund a portion of those collections today? Are its entitlement programs in such good ...
Tax Simplification, Part I - Nov 10, 2011
Herman Cain's 9-9-9 Plan, which involves eliminating the 15.3% payroll tax, of which every dime is presently committed to current Social Security and Medicare payments (and then some), fails to address the main problem ...
Tax Simplification, Part II - Nov 17, 2011
“There is no doubt that many provisions in the Tax Code benefit narrow groups of taxpayers, but the dirty little secret is that the largest special interests are us – the vast majority of U.S. taxpayers. Virtually all of us benefit from ...
Herman Cain's 9-9-9 Sham - Oct 23, 2011
Herman Cain argues that the reason we need his 999-Plan is because the tax law is too complicated. But is it really? I've worked with the tax law for 30 years, and I don't think it's all that complicated. It may have some complex ...
3rd Concern with the 9-9-9 Plan - Oct 29, 2011
Since under the current tax code, the taxpayer's in the first example are already in a 35% marginal tax bracket, if they earned an additional $1,000,000, they would pay federal taxes of $698,543 under the current tax code, ...
Obamas 9-9-9 Tax Cut | For the Blind - Oct 30, 2011
According to a study on GOP flat tax proposals conducted by the non-partisan Tax Policy Center, the 9-9-9 Plan would cause '95 percent of people making $1 million or more to receive tax cuts averaging $487,300'. ...
Taxing the Rich – 1765 to 2011, Part I - Sep 02, 2011
“There is a limit to the taxing power of a State beyond which increased rates produce decreased revenue. If that be exceeded intangible securities and other personal property become driven out of its jurisdiction, industry ...
Taxing the Rich – 1765 to 2011, Part II - Sep 03, 2011
Believing the income tax to be unconstitutional, President Grover Cleveland refused to sign it. The Act became law in 1894 without his signature, but was ruled to be unconstitutional in the following year. In 1895, the Supreme ...
Taxing the Rich – 1765 to 2011, Part III - Sep 04, 2011
In 1765, Great Britain imposed a series of taxes upon the American Colonies, in order to pay for its lengthy French and Indian War (1754-1763). After the war, the British forced upon the Colonies, the Stamp Act of 1765, ...
Obama's Tax Fallacy - Jan 27, 2010
First of all 43.4% of Americans don't pay any income taxes. That leaves the rest of us. So did 95% of the 56.6% who actually pay income taxes get a tax cut? I doubt it, but even if that were true, it's not 95% of all Americans (or ...
Obama's Tax Fallacy II: Updated - Mar 05, 2010
According to the Tax Policy Center, there were 151 million tax units in 2009 (excluding dependents of other tax units). Out of those 151 million tax units, 65.6 million, or 43.4% had zero or negative tax liabilities here ...
Obama's 1950’s Tax Fallacy - Aug 06, 2011
The table below compares what 1950's tax rates looked like back then, against what they would look like in 2010 dollars. [Note: Tax rates were the same throughout the 1950’s, and the brackets for Single and Married Filing ...
2011 Tax Increase: A Reality Check - Jul 17, 2010
Left-wing pundits are claiming that the Bush tax cuts were for the wealthy, which is simply not true. Next year when the 10% tax bracket disappears, and tax rates return to pre-2001 levels, will represent an across the board tax ...
2011 Tax Jam: Wrong Way, Wrong Road - Jul 24, 2010
In my last blog post, 2011 Tax Increase: A Reality Check, I attempted to point out how the Bush tax cuts applied to all Americans at every level of income, and that with their expiration at the end of 2010, income taxes will rise ...
2011 Tax Hike: Progressive Style - Jul 25, 2010
Obama and the progressives want to somehow let the Bush tax cuts expire for anyone making over $200,000 per year, but it's not clear whether or not tax rates for those below that amount will revert to pre-2001 levels. ...
We Are All Billionaires Now - Apr 17, 2011
Good luck to Democrats in first identifying tax breaks that benefit people with net worth's of over $1 million (or $1 billion). They don't exist. And secondly, since more than half of millionaire households are headed by retirees, ...
Obama's Static Tax Blunder - Sep 03, 2010
"If we cut taxes, our revenue will decrease, and if we raise taxes, our revenue will increase." "So let's compromise. Let's keep taxes the same on the many, and raise them on the few, that way we'll increase our revenue, and ...
Obamacare's Effect on Small Business - Oct 06, 2011
“An unlimited power to tax involves, necessarily, a power to destroy; because there is a limit beyond which no institution and no property can bear taxation.” ~ Daniel Webster in M'CULLOCH v. STATE, 17 U.S. 316 (1819) - ...
Give Me a Tax Cut, or Give Me Death! - Nov 20, 2009
Do Small Business Owners deserve tax relief? You're damned right! What can you do about it in Washington D.C.? Well, if you want Small Businesses to spend more, hire more, and stop the lay offs, then stop squeezing us. ...
Payroll Tax Cut Forsakes the Poor - Feb 22, 2011
But first of all, extending last year's tax rates actually didn't do anything for anybody (i.e. nothing gained, nothing lost). Secondly, renewing jobless benefits for the long-term unemployed was simply the price we had to pay for a ...
Obamacare's Deadweight Loss - Oct 12, 2011
Prior to Obamacare, with its one existing plant, TEA, Inc. would have net income of $150,000, would pay federal income taxes of $41,750, and would be left with after-tax income of $108,250 (see table below). Assuming all ...
Obama's Ersatz Rich | The Top 400 - Sep 09, 2010
If the goal is to tax the "rich", it would be very easy for Obama to raise taxes on them. All he has to do is add some new upper level tax brackets such as I mentioned above. In fact, such a tiered system existed back in 1921. ...
Keeping It Real: Obama's $250,000 Fallacy - Sep 06, 2010
President Calvin Coolidge, under the Mellon Tax Bill, slashed top rates from 73% in 1921, down to 25% in 1926. The new top bracket was 25% for anyone making over $100,000 ($1,206,419 in 2010 dollars). So under the ...
Tax Revolt of 2010 | Authentic - Sep 11, 2010
War has oft been used as an excuse for raising taxes, and tax hikes have sometimes led to war. Prior to the imposition of the income tax, the federal government's primary source of revenue was through tariff duties. ...
Obsolete Government Programs, Part 1 | FICA - Apr 20, 2011
If we were not forced to pay this mandatory tax of 6.2% (12.4% for the self-employed) on earned income up to the limit of $106,800, we would be able to save a greater portion of our own money into the modern retirement ...
Obsolete Government Programs, Part 2 | Medicare - Apr 21, 2011
Medicare is partially financed through payroll taxes imposed by the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) and the Self-Employment Contributions Act of 1954. In the case of employees, the tax is equal to 2.9% (1.45% ...
Real Tax Reform I: Taxing Small Business - Nov 13, 2010
Much of the debate against raising tax rates on the upper bracket centers around how income taxes are computed on small business owners. The debate focuses on the way that pass-through income, which is earned by the ...
Real Tax Reform II: Taxing Corporations - Nov 16, 2010
In Part I, we focused on unfair tax policies surrounding S-Corporations and Partnerships. The prospect of increasing tax rates on business owners is a far cry from what most of us would consider meaningful fiscal reform. Part II ...
Tax Reform 101: Stuck on Static - Nov 18, 2010
Example 1: Static Revenue Policy – Joe the retailer owns a gift shop. One day Joe got sick and tired of lackluster sales and decided to raise prices by 50%. Joe believed that if he doubled prices, while maintaining the same ...
Tax Reform 201: The Optimal Tax Rate - Nov 23, 2010
Those immersed in the static conception of human behavior say that America will never grow its way out of debt. Well, that's a self-fulfilling prophecy if we base our tax policy on the static view. So do they think we can tax our ...
Tax Rates, Earmarks, and Weiners - Dec 20, 2010
For those who think that a top federal tax rate of 35% is too low, there is a solution. How about forking over some of that excess lucre? How about putting your money where your mouth is? The time to stand up for your ...
The Elitist Condescension Tax Credit - Dec 06, 2010
According to some estimates, if made permanent, the Making Work Pay tax credit will cost the U.S. government an estimated $640 billion through 2018. Any idiot who would vote for something that cost so much and helps no one should be ...
Shared Sacrifice and a Free Lunch - Dec 05, 2010
According to the Tax Policy Center, in tax year 2009 there were 151,500,000 tax filers excluding dependents of other taxpayers and out of those 71,000,000 (46.9%) had a zero or negative income tax liability. ...
Debt & Taxes: Obama's Rate of Change - Feb 18, 2010
During the 16 year period ending with fiscal year 2009, GDP achieved an average annual growth rate of 6.8%, while government revenues (taxes) grew at 4.5%, and the national debt grew at 10.3%. Summary: The national debt ...
Such an impressive list...Thank you! BTTT for later read.
I think we have a new record here for Blog Pimping.
30 (count ‘em) ~THIRTY~ self directed links to a single blog in one post.
It’s kind of like one of those old sitcom episodes where the cast needs a week off, so they make a story from outtakes of all the previous shows.
If you don't engage me in the first 200 words, fergetit.
Now, if it was interesting.... I've read some long-winded stuff here on FR.
But you? You failed that test.
/johnny
Pfl
Incredible list
Larry, Thank you for compiling all the data, very interesting!
I just read ‘Obama’s 1950s Tax Fallacy’ and ‘We Are All Billionaires Now’ as I was intrigued by the titles. Will peruse the rest as time allows.
I do believe that the reason the powers that be are pushing the tax-the-rich meme (including the rich like Warren Buffett), is to raise the capital gains tax from 15% to something much higher.
The US government and everyone it supports are looking at the baby boomers, who have been working their arses off for years, getting ready to put their feet up and enjoy a well earned rest. Those baby boomers will no longer be getting an income that can be confiscated through income tax and instead will be trying to live off the interest on their savings.
Let’s face it, the 15% in capital gains tax on that interest will not cover the bloated government worker salaries, the subsidies to connected businesses (ag, oil, etc), or the vote buying from every pandering politician. Those in power have to raise the capital gains rate to at least the 28% to 35% rate that most of the middle class pay on their income currently. If they don’t the shortfall may have to actually be paid by the Warren Buffetts and we all know that’s not going to happen!
What amazes me is how they have convinced the idiot hordes to call for “taxing the rich”. The real rich will have special new accounting rules and deductions that protect them from the increases. Just like the AMT, Alternative Minimum Tax, that was to make sure “millionaires” paid something, any new tax scheme will not be indexed to inflation and instead will hit the middle class the most.
P.S. I don’t mind a blog like yours that shares info and charts without ads. Thanks again for all of your hard work.
That sure is a lot of blog links. Dude.
You gotta give this one some credit: A gazillion pimpings all in one shot. At least it’s economical.
If you scoll up and down real fast on this post, it’s almost psychadelic.
GROOOOOVY, dude.....The colors.....the colors.....
BTW, you’re on target as always.....
The technique must be relatively effective. Think about those crappy TV commercials by ambulance-chasing shyster lawyers and schlockware-hawking infomercialists hammering you with 1-800 phone numbers a couple of dozen times in 30 seconds.
Thanks for your kind words!
Thanks for your kind words!
Actually there are 34 links to 34 articles, imbedded with other links to other sites, so there could be a thousand links all in one post.
"Ride On!"
I offered neither premise, nor conclusion, nor have I advertised products, or solicited lucre. Thus, there is nothing to defend. Next blog post!
So you're saying that moderation cannot be applied to income taxes?
This nation existed for close to a century and a half without taxation of income and there's no reason it can't do the same thing today.
I think that's covered in -- Taxing the Rich – 1765 to 2011, Parts I, II, and III -- "Believing the income tax to be unconstitutional, President Grover Cleveland refused to sign it. The Act became law in 1894 without his signature, but was ruled to be unconstitutional in the following year. In 1895, the Supreme Court..." "The freedoms won by Americans in 1776 were lost in the revolution of 1913." ~Frank Chodorov During the first 137 years of American history (1776 – 1912), the income tax only existed for 11 years, while no income tax was imposed upon private citizens for 126 years.
As a blogger of dubious value (I’m being honest here. I write fact-based hit pieces that drip with venom about people I don’t like. We’re a dime a dozen.) to society, I always try to give my fellow bloggers the benefit of the doubt. I know how good the praise feels and I know how lousy falling flat on one’s face feels. (I’ve written my share of dogs, too.)
HOWEVER——
This is pimping arrogance I would never dream of.
I guess it depends on one's definition of evil. U.S. income taxes were conceived in war, another objective evil, I suppose. But tariffs also lead to war, and with its demise came the income tax. Sounds like a Catch 22, "Orr would be crazy to fly more missions and sane if he didn't, but if he was sane he had to fly them. If he flew them he was crazy and didn't have to; but if he didn't want to he was sane and had to."
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