What should taxes be?

Im giving 8 choices. The question.... what percentage should an American making 10,000,000 pay in taxes? We will assume the number is a combination of federal/FICA/state. If you live in NY state the number falls between 40 and 50 now.

I picked 40, as it is around what I pay now, and no, I don't make nearly that much. It seems once you break the 50% mark that it is just wrong.
At 40% I pay more than dozens of middle class households combined for essentially the same services.

I picked 20 but prefer to write-in 10.

Taxes should be LOW as its the only way to rein in the over zealous politicians who always want to throw money at a problem and the special interest groups that complain about it.

Prior to passage of the Volstead Act, seventeen percent of the federal budget came from alcohol taxes.

If we limit taxation to 'sin taxes' and return road-building to lotteries and tolls, the politicians will starve .... and that is good.

IF you want cradle to grave welfare, you can go the Scandinavian route of virtually confiscatory taxation with just about all occupations paying pretty much the same salary and with free university education, you study whatever you want to study and work at whatever you want to.

End tenure, close the schools, shut down special interest programs, stop giving the politicians money.

Taxes should be LOW as its the only way to rein in the over zealous politicians who always want to throw money at a problem and the special interest groups that complain about it.

Prior to passage of the Volstead Act, seventeen percent of the federal budget came from alcohol taxes.

If we limit taxation to 'sin taxes' and return road-building to lotteries and tolls, the politicians will starve .... and that is good.

IF you want cradle to grave welfare, you can go the Scandinavian route of virtually confiscatory taxation with just about all occupations paying pretty much the same salary and with free university education, you study whatever you want to study and work at whatever you want to.

End tenure, close the schools, shut down special interest programs, stop giving the politicians money.

Just to be clear, do you mean marginal tax rate or effective tax rate?

I think everyone should pay 10% flat tax for all income (no deductions or write offs) and a 10% sales tax on everything (no exclusions).

Quote: SOOPOO

I picked 40, as it is around what I pay now, and no, I don't make nearly that much. It seems once you break the 50% mark that it is just wrong.
At 40% I pay more than dozens of middle class households combined for essentially the same services.

I don't see why it's a problem. Our taxes aren't fair, but then people's abilities aren't evenly distributed either. No matter how hard some people try they could never make it through the medical school you attended.

If you can't pay a excellent teacher who is willing to work in an inner city with problem kids at ridiculously meager salary a better salary who could otherwise make much more with her brain power in some corporate position, the least we can do is have a properly aligned progressive tax structure.

50% btw

Quote: rxwine

I don't see why it's a problem. Our taxes aren't fair, but then people's abilities aren't evenly distributed either. No matter how hard some people try they could never make it through the medical school you attended.

If you can't pay a excellent teacher who is willing to work in an inner city with problem kids at ridiculously meager salary a better salary who could otherwise make much more with her brain power in some corporate position, the least we can do is have a properly aligned progressive tax structure.

50% btw

The wages of teachers have increased significantly in the last few decades and the quality of the education the kids receive has plummeted. I for one do not put teachers on a pedestal. Most of my teacher friends of my age agree with me and got out of the system because of their fellow teachers lack of work ethic.

I picked 40.