[OneWingedShark]

“I'd actually rather an income tax, and a flat-rate, with no exemptions no write-offs, no credits, no rebates, and no withholding”
Correct me if I an wrong, but is that not how our current income tax started?? Way back when the income tax was 1% on only the high income earners. Why should the Government know about out income?

Perhaps; but if I had my way it'd be a part-and-parcel of 2 Constitutional Amendments, summarized as follows
Money:

1. Sec 1 - Strips Congress of the ability to set value to the Dollar
2. Sec 2 - Sets the value of the Dollar, in terms of avoirdupois ounces of Gold (99.9% pure)
3. Sec 3 - Reiterates the value of Sec 2 in approximate international units. (To guard against congress [ab]using weights and measures to get around Sec 1.)
4. Sec 4 - All payments by the federal government to States or Citizens must be Gold.
5. Sec 5 - The treasury must yearly make an accounting of gold physically in its possession; this report shall be public.
6. Sec 6 - "The Congress shall incur no debt which shall cause the total debt of the United States to exceed 110% of the value of the gold reported by the Treasury."
7. Sec 7 - Any government official, agent, employee, or judge which causes gold to be confiscated from a citizen will be tried for theft, and upon conviction:
   
   1. Be fired immediately.
   2. Lose all pension and retirement benefits.
   3. Restore twice that which was confiscated to the bereaved.
   4. Pay any and all legal fees.

Tax:

1. Sec 1 - Eliminates and prohibits all federal taxes except: proportional or flat-rate on the citizen's income, but not both.
2. Sec 2 - If income is taxed federally, then the rate shall be 1%, 5%, or 10% as the Congress may determine; paid to the federal government directly.
3. Sec 3 - No State, or subdivision thereof or municipality, shall apply a varying rate on incomes taxed.
4. Sec 4 - Explicit re-affirmation of the Federal government's power to lay duties and tariffs on international trade/shipping.

We can now collect sales tax on “New” items without any problems. Point of sale can forward the $$ to the Treasury same as they do now at the state level. No forms required, it may not be perfect but it is a lot better than what we have now.

This is true; but it won't go that way... it'll be put on all sales and thereby feed the beast in an unseen manner [like withholdings do now].

[EXCH54FE]

“but if I had my way”

If I had my way king o would be in jail along with most of the Dems and a few of the Reps.

You have some very good points, however they need Constitutional Amendments. With the group in congress now that will never happen.