The answer is:
Limit the Federal government to 10% of our gross cumulative incomes. So if you add all of our gross incomes, and you come up with $100, the Feds could spend only $10.00. Of that $10.00, $3.33 would be raise through a national sales tax (so as not to hurt business and to collect money from people who do not declare income) and $6.67 through a flat income tax. So it is not one or the other, but both. And the only deduction there would be would be for charitable donations.
Other than DennisR's comment, the entire thread is arguing over HOW to collect a tax.
Nobody is talking about HOW MUCH is acceptable.
Seems like, until we can all agree on what an "ALTERNATIVE MAXIMUM TAX" is, that all these plans are just book-selling vehicles.
Is it 10% of gross domestic incomes? Is it $40,000 per person? $50,000?
If you can't put a max on per person contributions, then we can't put a limit on government spending, or tax chicanery.