IMO, to get out of this financial mess, taxes should increase on higher wage earners.
But change the rules so they have to reinvest to get a discount.
Most important is the spending, ‘Corruption has run amuck’.
No, no, no.
Anything *progressive* by the government is always confiscation.
The problem is spending.
We are already taxed in excess.
The government has no right to "progressively tax" success and it certainly has no right to the accumulated wealth of the deceased.
Give it more thought. Too many people pay NO taxes at all. If we're going to pay taxes, then everyone ought to have to pay.
“But change the rules so they have to reinvest to get a discount.”
One idea I had was to allow people to NOT pay taxes on up to $10,000 of Dividends (for stock held one year or more) and Interest on page 1 of the IRS 1040 Form. This would be especially helpful for people trying to develop a retirement income. It would also encourage long range investment in business. As a compromise the tax on incomes above $1 million would be allowed to revert to the 3.5% higher taxation level.
Here is an idea. Increase taxes on higher wage earners and we will figure out how to not be higher wage earners. Get it? I earned 6 figures for many, many years. This year I chose to run in the red... Get it?
How does that get us out of this financial mess?