Trent Ruble's Blog: The Other Way It Is - Posts Tagged "irs"

Everyone knows that the only certainties in life are death and taxes. While the medical profession works in vain to keep us alive, at the same time draining our pocket, our American government drains our other pocket with an unfair tax system. Unfortunately, we must accept that we're going to die and, also, that our government needs some of our money in order to operate. But, I think we can all agree that it's time for a tax overhaul.



In 2008, Governor Mike Huckabee, while campaigning for President of the United States, proposed a national sales tax, known as the Fair Tax (www.fairtax.org). The proposed sales tax would replace the federal income tax system. It seems like a radical idea but one that makes perfect sense. What makes a sales tax fair is that it would be paid by everyone making a purchase, including drug dealers, prostitutes, illegal aliens, terrorists, those paid "under the table" and anyone else currently cheating the system. This would make the total tax liability less for the rest of us.

In addition to those advantages, a national sales tax would encourage savings as there would be no tax on money not yet spent, it would eliminate the need for the IRS and the expenses involved in operating that behemoth which, again, would lower the total tax. That, in turn, means no more taxes withheld from our paychecks and no more complicated tax returns.

The only thing I would add to the plan is a rate freeze. Once the exact amount is determined, maybe after a trial period, it should be capped at that rate. If the government determines that a certain percentage is sufficient then it will always be sufficient as the amount of tax will naturally increase with inflation. An increase in the rate should never be necessary except in some emergencies and, of course, in cases of mismanagement.

The Fair Tax with a rate freeze. What's not to like?