[Vinnie]

I like parts of the fair tax and parts of the flat tax.

However there is one group that the fair tax ruins.

These are the people that have saved their money, bought stocks,mutual funds,Roth IRA's, have paid taxes on that money and appreciation all along and then will have to pay 23+% on anything they buy with that money.
Double taxation.
And that is a large percentage of the population.

Another point, I think a 23+% tax on a car or home will present a 'sticker shock' that will kill retail sales, esp. in the short run.
It would certainly drive up the price of used items since they would be tax free. ( supply and demand)

[Always Right]

Obviously you are not informed enough and need to be re-educated. Be prepared to be linked to the fairtax website for your re-education. /sarcasm

Actually you raise some legitimate concerns, but don't expect a fairtaxer to admit it.

[pigdog]

There's less sticker shock than you imagine since used cars or homes are no taxed.

In addition, the prices of taxable items will actually decrease with the FairTax as the cascading, embedded tax costs which artificially raise prices presently will be removed with the FairTax causing prices to go down before any tax is applied. Overall prices probably won't change much.

Right now under the income tax, these artificially raised prices will be paid on anything and everything you spend money for which affects all of us while under he FairTax you have some things not taxed and can at least control the timing of your consumption.

Presently many savers are hit with different types of taxes even before they spend any money in addition the the "hidden taxes" of the raised prices. Used items are typically cheaper now than new ones so it's hard to see a reason why this would not coninue with the FairTax.

[Man50D]

These are the people that have saved their money, bought stocks,mutual funds,Roth IRA's, have paid taxes on that money and appreciation all along and then will have to pay 23+% on anything they buy with that money. Double taxation. And that is a large percentage of the population.

The income tax imposed on investment income and pension benefits or IRA withdrawals would be repealed. Pension funds, IRAs, and 401(k) plans had assets of $6.5 trillion in 1994. An income tax deduction was taken for contributions to most of these plans. All beneficiaries and owners of these plans expected to pay income tax on them upon withdrawal but will not be required to do so under the FairTax. All capital gains taxes would be repealed http://www.fairtaxvolunteer.org/smart/faq-main.html#16

Another point, I think a 23+% tax on a car or home will present a 'sticker shock' that will kill retail sales, esp. in the short run. It would certainly drive up the price of used items since they would be tax free. ( supply and demand)

You forget all goods and services already contain the embedded costs of the current tax system in their prices. When these embedded taxes are removed, prices come down by as much as 22%.Also with no IRS compliance costs are greatly reduced driving down prices even further(http://www.fairtaxvolunteer.org/smart/faq-main.html#17). Also mortgage rates will drop by about 25 percent (about 1.75 points) as bank overhead falls also due to much less compliance costs(http://www.fairtaxvolunteer.org/smart/faq-main.html#21). I suggest you read more about the Fair Tax(http://www.fairtax.org) before you make anymore statements.