"....it has all been steered and corrected and elections have been fought and won to make changes for almost 100 years."
Indeed it has. And the result is a system which is so complex that even the professionals can't understand it.
If our tax system is such a marvel of economic incentives and so integral to our economic well-being, how is it that the American people despise it so much? Alternatively, how did the President's Tax Commission misread the sentiments of the American people so badly? You can read their interim report here
http://www.taxreformpanel.gov/index.shtml
The title of their report is "America Needs a Better Tax System".
PS: I have posed this question before on other FR threads and never gotten a response. I am not expecting one this time, either.
That is a pretty ridiculous statement, it may be complex but people do understand it, and in fact become expert at it esp within their own little niches. I feel like I "understand" the present system well enough to start and operate a business just fine.
Is it perfect, or super efficient? No, it needs to be reformed and made simpler. And we need to get a handle soon on the spending side with SocSec or this whole tax reform discussion is like rearranging the chairs on the Titanic.