I'm sixteen and to this date I've never earnt enough in a week to qualify to pay tax. But I hopefully will soon, so just out of curiosity, what is the legal basis for tax, and are there any theoretical (or currently applied) alternatives?
Posted by Avatar300 (Member # 5108) on :
There is no legal basis for taxes. Many governments get around this by claiming that every penny you earn actually belongs to them. Thus, when they take it away from you it isn't a tax.
Posted by The Pixiest (Member # 1863) on :
You are the property of the government. Anything you earn is theirs. What they let you keep is out of their generousity. They can even take your body and send you off to die if they so choose.
Welcome to Adulthood!
Posted by cheiros do ender (Member # 8849) on :
Yay! Okay, so what is a government muel?
And no, I'm not an adult yet, and never will be. I'm well prepared already for my flight to Neverland the night before I turn 18.
Posted by Avatar300 (Member # 5108) on :
Do you mean mule? It's anyone who isn't a member of the governing elite.
Posted by The Pixiest (Member # 1863) on :
No, you're not an adult yet. But you're starting to worry about Adult things.
And I believe the Neverland Ranch is closed =) (Oh, that OTHER neverland, gotcha)
Posted by Avatar300 (Member # 5108) on :
Wasn't Neverland Ranch scheduled for a re-opening in Bahrain next year?
Posted by cheiros do ender (Member # 8849) on :
So no-one has anything to say defending taxes? Wow.
Posted by ElJay (Member # 6358) on :
If you like things like roads and the fire department, they are a necessary evil. They fund the military, allow countries to send aid to disaster areas, and do a great deal of good in the world. They also go to fund things that the people who pay them don't always agree with, and there is a lot of waste in the system in most countries. So almost everyone has one or more things that they wish their taxes wouldn't help pay for.
No one likes them, but most people consider them a necessary evil. *shrug* What more do you want? There cannot be government without taxes, and while I don't always agree with my government I do consider it somewhat better than anarchy. For the moment.
Posted by cheiros do ender (Member # 8849) on :
How about an even tax rate for everyone? Apparently Australia is the most overtaxed country in the world. If I earn $120 (or thereabouts) I pay ~$1 tax, less than 1%. If I earn something like $400 I'm made to pay something like 20%. That's not that much earnings difference for a 19% tax difference. And yes, there are things my taxes go to that I don't like, such as dole bludgers (sp?).... like myself.
Public works aren't really public works if the public doesn't get a full democratic say in where their own money is being put. And it's not like we can just up and leave if we don't like it.
Posted by Stephan (Member # 7549) on :
Also remember that the United States does have the lowest tax rate in the free world.
If you are lucky enough to be extremely and insanely rich one day, you might not even have to worry about paying them.
Posted by cheiros do ender (Member # 8849) on :
Hmm, well I've got my new goals in life:
1. Move to America and apply for citizenship.
2. Become extremely and insanely rich.
Sounds great. I'm looking forward to it.
Posted by Stephan (Member # 7549) on :
The problem with a standard tax rate is that it would be felt worse by those making less. $10,000 to someone making $100,000 a year does not hurt as much as $1,000 from someone making only $10,000 a year.
Posted by cheiros do ender (Member # 8849) on :
Ahh, but that's why we have poverty lines. Above the poverty line (earnings matching the cost of living, after tax), I believe everyone should contribute the same percentage.
Posted by Stephan (Member # 7549) on :
Then you have to decide where to draw the line, and keep raising it to make up for inflation. A 2% adjustment each year I think would be mandatory.
Posted by cheiros do ender (Member # 8849) on :
Okay, now you're going to have to explain inflation to me. I more or less know what it is, but why can't all employers simply pay more as inflation rises?
Posted by Artemisia Tridentata (Member # 8746) on :
Taxes are a part of "Total Compensation". That is the cost to an employeer for your labor. If the taxes go up, your total compensation rises. Your employeer then needs to decide if "you are worth it." If you are not, then you are out of a job.
Posted by zgator (Member # 3833) on :
quote:Public works aren't really public works if the public doesn't get a full democratic say in where their own money is being put.
Public works are for the good of the public. Should there be a vote for every new road, road widening, change in the bus schedule, replacement of a sewer line, new water treatment plant, etc? That would be an awful lot of voting. The government employs people to know when and where these things are needed and to use public money as effectively as possible. That doesn't happen as often as we would like, but making it fully democratic would be a nightmare.
Posted by cheiros do ender (Member # 8849) on :
If these people were to become not worth keeping, then surely the minimum wage should be done away with so that jobs they are competent for can pay what they're worth, no matter what that is. From there they can be government supported (trained and funded) into better jobs, and pay off their debt later. This whole issue, to me, seems to assert the idea that people under the poverty line aren't worth/capable of getting out, and so need a minimum wage and these differing tax rates (for everyone) in order for the poor to simply survive. Posted by Stephan (Member # 7549) on :
I also think minimum wage should require a 2% adjustment. That way you don't have the sudden $1 an hour increase like they just did here in Maryland, that will hurt some small businesses that just employ teens.
![[Frown]](frown.gif)
If I earn $120 (or thereabouts) I pay ~$1 tax, less than 1%. If I earn something like $400 I'm made to pay something like 20%. That's not that much earnings difference for a 19% tax difference. And yes, there are things my taxes go to that I don't like, such as dole bludgers (sp?).... like myself. ![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
![[Blushing]](graemlins/blushing.gif)
I more or less know what it is, but why can't all employers simply pay more as inflation rises?