[ancient_geezer]

I have yet to pay sales tax at a flea market in VA where I have bought all the necessities of life: food, clothing, tools, etc.

So what is your paranoia over?

If the flea market seller remits the tax at some prior purchase before it is sold to you, no NRST is collected at sale to you except as he may demand a higher price from you to compensate himself for tax paid on those things he's selling.

If he's selling you servicable used goods, which clothing and tools often are at such markets, again no problem with NRST.

In any case tThe states will still be who administers the NRST.

H.R.2525
SPONSOR: Rep Linder, John (introduced 07/17/2001)
A bill to promote freedom, fairness, and economic opportunity by repealing the income tax and other taxes, abolishing the Internal Revenue Service, and enacting a national retail sales tax to be administered primarily by the States.

Refer: http://www.fairtax.org & http://www.salestax.org

The history of the use of retails sales taxes simply do not support your sky is falling view as your own statement provide evidence to.

[palmer]

So what is your paranoia over?

I am at ease with the current system. Sales tax is low and the volume at the flea market is low enough for the tax collectors to ignore. Under an NRST, my understanding from this discussion is that the tax authorities will require wholesale purchases to be tracked. For example my sock vendor will be identified when he purchases the socks in L.A. and has them shipped here.

If the tax goes up, he will have an incentive to sell untaxed socks to me at a private sale. He might say he lost the sock shipment, he might have the socks made locally in a cottage, he might smuggle them through our busy ports. In any case the government will have a larger incentive to track all shipments of all merchandise at the wholesale level.

What could decrease my ability to purchase anonymously is the tracking technology and the "legitimizing" of vendors. I could easily foresee a day when the flea market is either shut down or patrolled with agents looking for "new" merchandise.

[rolling_stone]

Thanks for the informative posts...besides the waste on money spent on the nonproductive accounting etc for the present income tax, a NRST would provide those taxed the freedom to buy more or less and pay more or less tax according to their situations. It would take the power of loopholes and special interest groups away from Congress who has used the Income Tax to generate contributions and allows them to attempt social engineering. None of those things are helpful to the general populace and promote the general welfare. Imagine people & businesses being able to not worry about depreciation, interest, expensing items etc when making purchase decisions. A freer marked would result, and products might be well made to last longer if there is no tax benefit to replacing them every few years, but instead have to pay sales tax when they were replaced or else buying used goods. I think that would benefit those that make products that last a long time, resulting in old fashioned thriftyness and less waste of our resources. Between that and all the trees saved by less paperwork, this is an environmental friendly solution...