Yahoo Finance-Nearly half of US households escape fed income tax

"My attitude is that if the economy’s good for folks from the bottom up, it’s gonna be good for everybody."

"I think when you spread the wealth around, it’s good for everybody."





Let's hope that after four years there is something left to salvage.

I'm sure that people were saying that during Bush. Well they got their answer. There was something to salvage, but the new gate keeper decided to damage our country more.

So, what do you think. You ok with the way the tax system is working? I should be ok with it. I'm basicly at the bottom. The problem is much of my work is dependant on the people on the top. I need them to be in a mood to invest. If the "wealthy" people have to put a lot more into the government through increased taxes, they are going to stop putting money into our economy. Someone is going to lose out. It's not going to be government.

I have a neice who works part time. Has a couple kids. Hasn't made a ton of wise decisions, and has made many poor ones. She is at a net gain this tax season. Already gets assistance for other things, and then get's a free few grand from the rest of us. It appears from the statistics in the above artical, there are a whole lot of people like my neice.

Who is this helping? It's not helping my neice. She comes from a family of hard workers but has come to expect things, because our government has shown a willingness to giver her things.

It's not helping me. I don't have a problem paying my fair share. It's pretty sad to see that there are people, one of whom I'm related to, who will use money to buy a big screen television rather than spend it to fix the car to get to work. How am I supposed to be able to respect people when they are blatantly taking advantage of me, and all of the hard working taxpayers in this country.

It only helps the government. They can create need and use it to take more from us. The more need they create the more they justify taking ever more from us. They gain power over us. There's examples of this scenerio all through history, to presant day, from all over the world. Our country was once the place of solace for the oppressed around the world. Now, because of the current fundemental transformation, it's just another country with a government that dictates the haves and the have nots.

Maybe someday people will stop making excuses for poiticians who sell snake oil, saying that it will create social justice for all. Maybe. Someday.

 

America is out of money. End of story. obama will do what he wants to do, tax the rich into poverty.

 

This only strengthens my belief that people who do not pay taxes or even worse have a net gain on taxes should not be able to vote on the grounds of a conflict of interest. Since they are not contributing to paying this countries bills they should not have a say in how the money is spent.

 

Essenbtially you are asking for a poll tax, which has already been deemed unconstitutional, so what grounds do you have for your argument? What about government workers? Definately a conflict of interest there. Military? Same "conflict of interest" there. So should they be prohibited from voting too? I could even argue that since you benefit from our tax dollars that you too shouldn't vote. I can guarantee you get more value for your tax dollars than you pay. Try paying for road use, or national security, or the fire depts, etc.

Your statement makes me think you resent the poor. Do you think you are better than them because you make more money? My pastor has 5 kids and is dirt poor. He "profits" from the tax system due to EIC. I can safely say he's a better man than you by any standard. Or what about me? I'm a disabled vet living off a veterans disibility check, struggling through school, with a wife and 4 kids. Should I not be able to vote because I made money off the tax system plus I'm getting government money each month?

I understand some people abuse the system, I see it all the time. And its unfortunate that such a small percentage of people pay so much in taxes. But this is a problem that needs to be addressed in the tax codes and welfare programs not solved by limiting voting to those in the upper class. That is plain elitist class warfare, which if my foggy memory of history is correct its one of the reasons people fled countries like England.

 

Remind me again, who developed the multi-tier income tax system?

If you said Karl Marx, the man behind communism, give yourself three gold stars !!!

Unfortunately, I believe that the tax system in this country is an absolute horror. My personal belief is to have a flat tax rate, just like R. Steven Forbes presented in his presidential campaign. I also think 'Free Trade' should be replaced with 'Fair Trade', which basically states to any foreign country that if you want to tax our imports at XX% or $YY, we'll do the same to your imports. What you consider fair in your country to charge to import goods, we'll charge for your exports to be imported here.

And Wittom, I don't think it is just the tax system in this country that needs to be changed. I think we also need to abolish ALL foreign aid spending, along with many of the entitlement and subsidy programs in this country, that are bankrupting us. I can understand giving a TEMPORARY helping hand to get back on your feet, but to many, that 'helping hand' has become a way of life.

 

What I am tired of is third generation families that have never had a job among the lot. I am tired of politicians spending my hard earned money to buy these peoples votes. They have never contributed to the system so why should they be allowed to reap the benefits it provides?

If you opened a business that had 9 other partners for a total of 10 owners. 5 of the owners paid for all the expenses the business incurred yet the other 5 received more of the businesses profit. How long would you stay in this business agreement? That is exactly what is happening with the current tax system.

Why would I resent the poor? There is absolutely no sence in that. I do resent lazy people, people that survive by mooching off of others and government forced charity.

On what basis do you try to compare me to your pastor? You know very little about me and on what grounds are you trying to compare us? I could use the logic that he is dirt poor, has 5 kids and is a mooch. Therefore, he is a poor provider for his family and not an exceptionally great individual. However, I know nothing of him so I will refrain. Why should I be required to pay for his decision to have 5 kids? I chose to wait until I was older and more financially stable then start a family. Does this make me a poor person? Why is it my responsibility to pay for his children when I could keep the money and later provide for my own? I was not born with a silver spoon but worked hard and made a few wise decisions along the way that have put me in a pretty respectable position.

The EIC is named incorrectly. It should be called the WRC (Wealth Redistribution Credit). How is it anything other than Communism/Socialism to say that because you earned less than a set value and therefore you are entitled to receive a credit from the government. I must pay more money to the government because I earned more money than the prescribed amount. Why should the successful people be punished for their success?

Ok fine, as one of the members of society that carries a higher tax burden I am all for a flat tax or nation wide sales tax to replace the current fiasco. However, this will not happen as too many votes can be bought by redistributing wealth. What other method would you suggest to make all citizens support the services they receive? How is the current Robin Hood tax system we have not class warfare? We currently have only 50% of the people paying for all of the population. Of this number over 70% of the income is paid by 10% of the population.

 

I am not advocating that certain people should not be able to vote, but he could have something going on here... If people that benefit off the social programs (welfare, unemployment, public housing, food stamps, ect) Then they are basically in favor of government taking from the haves and giving to the have nots... That is stealing and a criminal offense, yes the government is guilty of this.
(Just a perspective that could apply)

I am kinda at a crossroads, I want everyone to vote but I don't want criminals to vote.

 

With the huge debt we have, I wish they would make 100% of us pay federal income tax and actually collect the tens of millions of unpaid taxes. Even if the bottom 1% only paid like $100 bucks for the whole year, at least pay something into the system. But that will never happen.

The next thing will be this VAT (Value added tax) that Europe already has. The admin is slowly dropping hints of this. I have been reading that 10% would bring in about $1 Trillion a year in revenue. We gotta pay for ObamaCare somehow Of course this little jewel wouldn't happen until after the election in Nov so the Democrats and media could blame it on the racist Republicans

 

BennyHanna--I would have to disagree with you, to a point. I believe those who are receiving government assistance for an extended period should lose their right to vote while receiving those benefits. Call it a trade. If a person with average abilities is receiving government assistance for longer than a year then odds are they are not doing anything to improve their position. Those people should lose their right to vote until they improve their position and get off the teat. This has nothing to do with paying taxes or not paying taxes. It has everything to do with receiving free government benefits. A person might not pay taxes because of their income level, but do not receive any government assistance. Those people would still be allowed to vote, and they are not paying the "poll tax" as you called it.

As for government employees, those people are actually providing a service to the government in exchange for their paycheck. Government employees have to go through a competitive hiring process and be deemed the best qualified for a job. People receiving government assistance only have to be able to prove they are converting O2 to CO2. The people receiving government assistance often are sitting at home doing little. To think you would classify a disabled vet in the same category as a person on extended government assistance is disconcerting to say the least. You have given more to your country than most people, and as such you deserve the ongoing thanks and support for that bit of you, that was left on the battlefield (even if it was lost in the battle against boredom). VA disability is just that, payment, it is not "free money". It is payment for a piece of you you will never get back, all due to your service with the government where you had little option but to do what you were told, unless it was illegal.

 

If you have not seen the results of the EIC on paper you won't believe it. I did an 08' return for a friends son who was too broke to pay a tax service. IIRC, total tax payed for the year was about $ 600, tax refund with EIC and dependent child credit was $ 3,700. Federal welfare at it's worst.

A flat consumption tax is the way, imo. Pay the tax when you make any purchase and be done with it. Make April 15th just another day.

 

I like the idea of a flat tax.....5% across the board something like that. We need to get rid of the entitlment programs like SS and food stamps and such, and especially being able to apply for these things in spanish. If the gov wants an all or nothing when it come to these social programs then get rid of them all and never again. Also, I think that we should get back to way it was many years ago, to vote you had to be a land owner. I think those that own land have a higher stake in the well being of the country.

You really want to know what is really costing money.....$300+ billion a year....illegal immigrants and there social welfare programs.

 

I'd like a federal sales tax on all retail sales only. Consignment shops, yard sales, wholesalers selling to businesses for legitimate business purposes, etc. would be exempt. A national "credit card" could be issued with a certain amount of exemption programed into it. The exemption would actually contain no money. So if a person is exempted $1000 in taxes, they swipe the card at check out and the sales tax is removed up to the $1000 limit. Once the limit has been hit then full taxes are collected. The exemption would be figured on what it is estimated to cost to feed a person for the year. This would allow for people to not pay taxes on the value of the food they purchase up to the limit. If a person wants to eat filet mignon and caviar then they go through the exemption faster than a person eating generic beanie weenies. Each year a person would file for their exemptions to get their card reloaded, if they don't file they don't get the exemptions.

I would only support any major changes to the tax code, if income taxes were made illegal and any changes to the tax rate had to be voted on by the population.