a thoughtful web.
Good ideas and conversation. No ads, no tracking.   Login or Take a Tour!
comment
artifex  ·  4799 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Elizabeth Warren Quote about the Social Contract Implied in Success
Well, inherent in what Warren is saying is this idea about the social contract - except it's not a contract. It's a system you're born into, which is dictated to you, and which you can't opt out of. It's really a bastardization of the term "contract."

But with that said, taxes largely don't go to better society. They go to fund wars, bureaucracies, and into corporate welfare programs - all things which are actively making the world worse.

Personally, I equate taxes with theft. It's an issue of principle with me, but I realize not many people go that far. That said, a flat tax would possibly be okay (if not more intrusive), but what would really work is to abolish the income tax and replace it with a national sales tax.

But that won't happen because 1) you don't propose a new tax without first doing away with the, otherwise you're bound to end up with both and, 2) what right does the government have to be a part of every single transaction in the country?

Personally, I feel we should go back to a volunteer government and no income tax. From a pragmatic POV, it genuinely worked for a long time, and quite frankly, we wouldn't be seeing the amount of corruption we're seeing today.