What is your view on the National Retail Tax?

[UrbanPancake]

I'm just curious as to what you guys think about this issue. Bush is for it, so I'm assuming that most of you without thoughts of your own will side with him on this issue.

 

[dems4me]

I'm just curious as to what you guys think about this issue. Bush is for it, so I'm assuming that most of you without thoughts of your own will side with him on this issue.

What is your definition of it :shrug:


pssst... you forgot to use your smilies like we talked about

 

[vraiblonde]

I'm assuming that most of you without thoughts of your own will side with him on this issue.

Nice try, Snooky, but Bush actually got that idea from me and a few others on here. We've been talking about this since WAY before Bush even RAN for President.

 

[happyappygirl]

I haven't read about THIS issue yet...but the one where SMECO is raising our rates to the tune of almost 20 bucks on average a month starting jan 1 now that steams me.

 

[HORUS]

Nice try, Snooky, but Bush actually got that idea from me and a few others on here. We've been talking about this since WAY before Bush even RAN for President.

I wish I knew what the heck Turbanhotcake was talking about.

 

[vraiblonde]

I wish I knew what the heck Turbanhotcake was talking about.

I wasn't aware that Bush was considering this beyond the wool-gathering stage but he's talking, I assume, about getting rid of withholding and going with a straight national sales tax on goods purchased.

This makes sense on so many levels. The rich, who buy more, will pay more in taxes. The poor, who buy less, will pay less. People who make their money through illegal means will still be contributing to our funding system because, although their income isn't taxed, they'll still be buying things.

Maybe make essentials - groceries, medicine, etc - non-taxable and put a higher rate on luxury items.

Hopefully Bush has some guru crunching the numbers right now to see if it's feasible.

 

[Bogart]

Why are dumbocrats against it?

 

[ylexot]

Why are dumbocrats against it?

:shrug: Because Bush is thinking about it?

 

[Vince]

I wasn't aware that Bush was considering this beyond the wool-gathering stage but he's talking, I assume, about getting rid of withholding and going with a straight national sales tax on goods purchased.

This makes sense on so many levels. The rich, who buy more, will pay more in taxes. The poor, who buy less, will pay less. People who make their money through illegal means will still be contributing to our funding system because, although their income isn't taxed, they'll still be buying things.

Maybe make essentials - groceries, medicine, etc - non-taxable and put a higher rate on luxury items.

Hopefully Bush has some guru crunching the numbers right now to see if it's feasible.

I always liked this idea. What were they calling it a few years back, the flat tax. A flat 2% across the board. Essentials exempt.

 

[Tonio]

This makes sense on so many levels. The rich, who buy more, will pay more in taxes. The poor, who buy less, will pay less. People who make their money through illegal means will still be contributing to our funding system because, although their income isn't taxed, they'll still be buying things.

Maybe make essentials - groceries, medicine, etc - non-taxable and put a higher rate on luxury items.

I agree. Between the Earned Income Tax Credit and the corporate loopholes, the current tax structure is a mess. If a national sales tax gets rejected, my second choice would be a flat income tax with only one deduction--the personal exemption.

 

[UrbanPancake]

What is your definition of it :shrug:


pssst... you forgot to use your smilies like we talked about

I'm not giving my side. It will be attacked, and I will be told I'm stupid.

 

[ylexot]

I always liked this idea. What were they calling it a few years back, the flat tax. A flat 2% across the board. Essentials exempt.

No. The flat tax was still an income tax. This would be a national sales tax instead of the current income tax system.

 

[UrbanPancake]

I haven't read about THIS issue yet...but the one where SMECO is raising our rates to the tune of almost 20 bucks on average a month starting jan 1 now that steams me.

It steams me too. But don't get off subject. (My electric bill is only about 70 dollars a month as is, but I really don't want to spend any more than that)

 

[vraiblonde]

My handlers haven't told me what to think yet.

 

[ericw]

Why are dumbocrats against it?

Because the very rich save most of their money or invest it in things the tax doesn't apply to, where the rest of us have to spend most of our money. They (the Dems) don't care that consumer prices will drop quite a bit and very fast, nor do they care that it's better to tax consumption than production.
Senator-elect Jim DeMint of SC is a big booster of this idea.

 

[UrbanPancake]

I wasn't aware that Bush was considering this beyond the wool-gathering stage but he's talking, I assume, about getting rid of withholding and going with a straight national sales tax on goods purchased.

This makes sense on so many levels. The rich, who buy more, will pay more in taxes. The poor, who buy less, will pay less. People who make their money through illegal means will still be contributing to our funding system because, although their income isn't taxed, they'll still be buying things.

Maybe make essentials - groceries, medicine, etc - non-taxable and put a higher rate on luxury items.

Hopefully Bush has some guru crunching the numbers right now to see if it's feasible.

I agree with you in theory. But groceries are one of the largest contributers to our GDP. If you didn't tax these the "National Retail Tax" would have to be extremely high on other goods.

 

[UrbanPancake]

I always liked this idea. What were they calling it a few years back, the flat tax. A flat 2% across the board. Essentials exempt.

They're suggesting to make it 15% across the board, not 2%.

 

[huntr1]

The electric bills are rising because the contract for electricity that SMECO had been operating under for the last 5 years or so expires 12/31/04. Because of the current contract, we have been paying BELOW market rate for the last few years. The new contract is still below current market value (but not by much) since it was finalized almost a year ago. Our bills are going up 15% I think it was, Pepco is going up 28% I believe I just read.

 

[Bogart]

Because the very rich save most of their money or invest it in things the tax doesn't apply to, where the rest of us have to spend most of our money. They (the Dems) don't care that consumer prices will drop quite a bit and very fast, nor do they care that it's better to tax consumption than production.
Senator-elect Jim DeMint of SC is a big booster of this idea.

And the very rich are evil, right?

 

[Vince]

No. The flat tax was still an income tax. This would be a national sales tax instead of the current income tax system.

A flat income tax would be good also. Look at the advantages. No one would have to file income tax, no IRS, tax audits go away, companies will be paying more with no loopholes to help them out, no deductions for b/s. The only down side is the loss of jobs.