As this guy points out, the fair tax is anything BUT fair.
In its zeal to extract a pound of flesh from that dastardly “rich guy”, it screws savers, retirees, and anyone who prizes productivity and thrift over consumption. Those folks pay twice.
Of course, this explains why a class warfare populist nut like Huckabee likes it.
There’s also this little matter of the tremendous incentive it will give to a cash-only, barter, underground economy.
Or does Huck think human beings will simply roll over and do what is expected of them?
I could never understand the ginned-up enthusiasm for this untried measure when the Flat Tax has a long and successful history in a whole slew of countries.
You are patently WRONG on this point!
Under the FairTax, unlike the income tax, everyone would be able to save and invest with previously untaxed dollars. They would be able to gather in the profits from those investments without having to first consider the tax consequences as well.
For the first time in the lives of anyone living in the USA today we would be truly FREE!
Nervous Tick, I challenge you to calm down, read something about the FairTax, and quit wasting your time blogging about something you have no idea what you are talking about. There is no way savers, retirees and productivity will be hurt under the FairTax; though they are being severely damaged under the income tax system, in more ways than you can imagine.
Fox example, under the income tax system, we all pay more for our products because businesses embed their tax compliance costs into the prices of their products, or services. You are currently paying, an average 22 cents out of every dollar you spend to reimburse businesses for their tax compliance costs. Under the FairTax you will pay 23 cents out of every dollar you spend for new goods and services; but, you will not be paying hidden taxes as you are under the income tax system; your income has nothing to do with how much you spend because you keep 100% of your income and pay the tax as you make purchases. You will no longer be paying payroll taxes - they will be paid from the FairTax’s 23 cents out of every dollar you spend.
Savers and Retirees will not be taxed on the incomes they receive through their savings, IRAs, pensions, Social Security, etc., but they will pay the sales tax when they spend their profits on new goods and services. However, because they will receive a “prebate” check the first of each month to cover the tax costs, up to the poverty level of spending, they will not pay taxes from their own earnings until they exceed the Poverty Level of Spending.
Where did you get the silly idea people will be paying twice? Sounds as though you are listening to the critics who have an agenda they are pursuing. We are paying twice and some times three times under our current tax system. We have payroll taxes and income taxes deducted from our paychecks and then pay taxes on our earnings from savings and investments, and when we die we are taxed if we worked hard and made successful investments and our estates exceed a certain level. All these taxes will disappear under the FairTax and we decide how much we pay in taxes by making wise purchasing decisions. Go to www.fairtax.org and get the facts from their research materials, not from some flunky with an agenda.