[ClearCase_guy]

They’re paying 24% in taxes? Would they support the Fair Tax? They’d pay less.

[sodpoodle]

Not shown on any retail purchases are the tax liabilities built in buy the seller, to cover the cost of doing business.

No-one objects to paying a fair share of taxes to cover the cost of defending this nation other Constitutionally mandated ‘general welfare’ expenses.......but we are at the end of the ‘slippery slope’ with no escape.

[from occupied ga]

This is meaningless for two reasons:

1. It doesn't give their income level or their house value - two important determinants in how much tax you pax, and
2. It only picks a single couple and who knows if it is representative or not. To be meaningful it would have to pick a statistically significant sample of people at various income levels stratify them and show the results for each stratum. Geography matters too. I suspect that they pay more property tax in Connecticut than they would an Georgia, but probably less than they'd pay in New York or New Jersey for a comparable house.

So this is just a bullshit article from NPR. Considering the source, it probably grossly UNDERSTATES the tax burden on the productive taxpayers. I know that I pay more than this in the various taxes that are extorted out of me so as to keep the government drones in beer, new cars, and elaborate vacations.

[mrsmith]

“But there are other taxes that people pay indirectly.”

Pay no attention to the taxes behind the mirror Dorothy...

[screaminsunshine]

Bull if you add in the Tax cost in every product you buy it is well over 50% of your income. Probably over 60% and going up. There ate Taxes upon Taxes upon Taxes. Now they are yapping about ‘Tax Cuts’. Bull there are not Tax Cuts. The Tax will either remain the same or go up. A lie on its face.

[FreedomPoster]

Their taxes vs. income bar graph is quite deceptive visually. In the first bar graph the width for “other taxes” is way too small compared to the width for “payroll taxes”, given the percentages of each.

There are likely other issues with this presentation (it *is* NPR, after all), but that one just jumped out at me.

[Vaduz]

Increased taxes is a result of not knowing what else to do.

[G Larry]

In 2011:
Federal - 39.6%
State - 5%
SSI & Medicare 7.6%
Sales Tax - 6%
Gas - 50 cents/gal
Property - $3100

That’s somewhere North of 65% paid out to gov’t!

[winodog]

24% ?

BS. Its much closer to 50% if not more

[Grammy]

This is horse feathers. We own a small business and our taxes are over 50%, just with a quick tally. We live in a state with no income tax and very low property taxes.

[CodeToad]

All we need to know is that the federal, State and local governments spend about 55% as much as the GDP to know that they tax 55%. Some is debt spending but that still will result in 55% taxes, if not more for interest. So, everyone pays about 55% in taxes; from income and payroll taxes, sales, gas, hidden (meaning, manufactuering pays and then you pay at retail), fees and fines, etc.