February 25, 2008 - PPM - Income Taxes

This week’s PET PEEVE MONDAY is TAXES.

Today marks the anniversary of the ratification of the 16th Amendment to the Constitution in 1913. That Amendment gave Congress the power to levy and collect taxes on income. Since then the slope has gotten slippier (I know it’s not a word) and the paste is out of the tube. In other words, it’s doubtful Income Taxes will get repealed like Slavery (13th Amendment) and Prohibition (21st Amendment).

Now the Democratic frontrunner wants to declare a class war on the “rich” and raise their taxes. Never mind, that if you don’t feel you are paying your fair share, you can always pay more.

Shouldn't the below bar graph be flat? Why do certain people pay a LARGER PERCENTAGE?

But our politicians need BILLIONS of more dollars to pay for their PET PROJECTS. The next time you hear a politician use the word "billion" in a casual manner, think about whether you want the "politicians" spending YOUR tax money.

A billion is a difficult number to comprehend, But let’s put it into perspective:

A billion seconds ago it was 1959.

A billion minutes ago Jesus was alive.

A billion hours ago our ancestors were living in the Stone Age.

A billion days ago no one walked on the earth on two feet.

A billion dollars ago was only 8 hours and 20 minutes, at the rate our government is spending it.

Some politicians have no concept of a BILLION. Louisiana Senator, Mary Landrieu (D), asked Congress for $250 BILLION to rebuild New Orleans. Interesting number, what does it mean?

If you are one of 484,674 residents of New Orleans (every man, woman, child), you each get $516,528.

Or, if you have one of the 188,251 homes in New Orleans, your home gets $1,329,787.

Here are some of the taxes we now pay:

Accounts Receivable Tax
Building Permit Tax
CDL License Tax
Cigarette Tax
Corporate Income Tax
Dog License Tax
Federal Income Tax
Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)
Fishing License Tax
Food License Tax
Fuel Perm it Tax
Gasoline Tax
Hunting License Tax
Inheritance Tax
Inventory Tax
IRS Interest Charges (tax on top of tax)
IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)
Liquor Tax
Luxury Tax
Marriage License Tax
Medicare Tax
Property Tax
Real Estate Tax
Service charge Taxes
Social Security Tax
Road Usage Tax (Truckers)
Sales Taxes
Recreational Vehicle Tax
School Tax
State Income Tax
State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)
Telephone Federal Excise Tax
Telephone Federal Universal Service Fe e Tax
Telephone Federal, State and Local Surcharge Tax
Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge Tax
Telephone Recurring and Non-recurring Charges Tax
Telephone State and Local Tax
Telephone Usage Charge Tax
Utility Tax
Vehicle License Registration Tax
Vehicle Sales Tax
Watercraft Registration Tax
Well Permit Tax
Workers Compensation Tax

Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago, and our nation was the most prosperous in the world. We had absolutely no national debt, had the largest middle class in the world, and one parent stayed home to raise the kids.

It’s time to scrap the INCOME TAX model and convert our system to a FAIR TAX or CONSUMPTION TAX system.

The Fair Tax will abolish all federal income taxes, death taxes, capital gains taxes, payroll taxes and the IRS. It would establish a 23% national retail sales tax. Americans would be taxed on what they spend, not what they earn. Citizens and businesses would not file tax returns; however, businesses would file sales tax returns.

An important feature of the Fair Tax legislation is the prebate: the federal government would send a monthly check to all households of citizens (sorry, legal citizens only) that equals the estimated monthly Fair Tax that a family earning at the federal poverty level would pay. The amount a household receives depends on its family size. So, a family living at poverty level income would essentially pay no federal tax.

To learn more, visit this site.