Charles Hugh Smith recently posted another interesting article which has been getting passed around the blogosphere: What’s the Difference Between Fascism, Communism and Crony-Capitalism? Nothing
CHS gets it mostly right, except that a consumption tax is regressive.
Having read voluminously regarding the issue of taxation to support a minimal state, I formed the idea of a land tax (with a high minimum threshold) as the only fair way to: A) Collect tax in an unambiguous, non-preferential way and B) Address the issue of vast fortunes amassed over the generations by force, fraud and graft.
Lo and behold, it turns out that I was not the first person to figure this out (shocking!). Please take a look at Georgism or Geolibertarianism as the (IMO) solution. Overview: http://geolib.pair.com/welcome.html also http://www.foldvary.net/
The keys IMO are:
A) Setting a high minimum threshold for the land tax. This allows for those that wish to be self-sufficient to live w/o any interference (e.g. your typical Amish/Mennonite farmer),
B) Setting a maximum for the total national/state tax rate. A country cannot collect more than about 22% of the total economic output in taxes before it experiences diminishing returns. The revenue generated would have to be split among federal, state and local, which is a policy issue beyond the scope of this particular post.
C) The prohibition of government debt. The reason for that should be self-evident at this juncture in history.
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