“The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived,
without apportionment among the several states, and without regard to any census or enumeration.”
-US Constitution, 16th Amendment
Economy: Reforming the Progressive Income Tax System
Introduction
Taxation has been around for a long time, since the first governments in human civilization were
formed, and it is how a government sustains itself and provides benefits to the people who pay taxes such
as in infrastructure, services (education, roads, etc.), and military protection.
It is the patriotic duty of every American, rich or poor, to put into their country, the United States
of America, and pay their taxes! There is no working American in this country who should get away with
paying zero taxes. In order for this system to work effectively everyone needs to put their share in for the
benefit of all Americans and the nation. It is every Americans patriotic duty to pay taxes! Paying your
taxes is the one of most patriotic actions you can do as citizens, secondly only to military service.
Now how the government is spending our tax dollars is another story and problem. If the
government (controlled by the politicians) is corrupt and wasteful of tax payer money spending on
anything not related to the national interests of the United States and American people - then that is not
the fault of taxation but the fault of the politicians who handle your money! Paying taxes is patriotic, it is
spending that is not patriotic! Politicians love to shift the blame away from themselves; “so I wasted your
money, it’s the taxes fault, not me”. The politicians from both parties are source of the problems, not the
concept of taxation! Go directly to the problem: blame the spenders who handle the taxes! Paying taxes is
very patriotic, how taxes are being spent in not patriotic!
If the current government is not using or spending tax dollars wisely nor efficiently for the benefit
of American society as we have seen these past decades - then this should signal a red flag in every
Americans mind that it is time for a new government! The system will not reform itself and we do need a
new and better tax system!
“Experience will teach us that no government costs so much as a bad one.”
-Alexander Hamilton, The Continentalist VI,
1782
Since paying taxes is patriotic, does that mean high taxes are always best and correct? No, any
overly taxed society places a burden on the people and nation as a whole. Of course, what is considered
“burdensome” can be very subjective and often subject to emotions instead of rationality. Unwise
spending by inept and corrupt political leadership places a burden on the economic health of the nation
and makes the population poorer.
Such poor leadership also results in incompetent public services, misguided social programs, and
military adventures unrelated to the national interests of the United States, thus increases the economic
burden. With good leadership that knows how to govern, taxes are spent wisely for the benefit of the
nation (and people) and public services, social programs, military, etc., are run effectively! Any tax
system needs to be efficient, effective, fair, and just, benefiting the nation and its citizens! This is the kind
of tax system we American Nationalists hope to create for the nation.
The Problems with the Tax System
One of main problems with our current tax system is that it is so complicated nobody can
understand it. Our tax code is over 70,000 pages long - up from 400 pages back in 1913 and is largely
filled with tax loopholes, deductions, regulations, etc., which make it impossible to comprehend unless
maybe you hire a team of accountants and lawyers. How did all this come to be? Why does Congress not
simplify the tax code for the average American?
For one, the tax system is rigged with tax loopholes and deductions to benefit the major donating
constituents of establishment politicians. And two, it is always easier for a politician to promise tax
breaks and “free” money to people in order to get elected rather than a politician promising to raise taxes
in order to, say, provide and improve education. The promise of “free” anything including tax
breaks/loopholes attracts people like moths to a fire.
What will it take to fix this country’s economy? Complete reconstruction in government spending
and taxation is an important one. Less government spending in certain areas (such as portions of certain
entitlements, welfare for non-citizens, fruitless wars, and international bodies), increase in taxes in certain
areas (such as on millionaires, a limit to various tax exemptions, tax deductions and credits, etc.), more
government spending in certain areas (such as promoting manufacturing and infrastructure), and less
taxes on the middle class!
Another problem is that nobody wants to give up anything they have gotten for free, whether it’s
through tax breaks or not and whether rich or poor. That does not help. Everyone is going to have to make
a sacrifice, no matter who you are, to save this country and the American people. This revolution requires
self-sacrifice, both for ourselves in the long-term and for our future children!
Our national debt is over $19,000,000,000,000 and growing as of 2016. It is time to take this
seriously and make the necessary reformations! For most of the previous decade, we have been spending
over $1 trillion more each year than we take in. Yet, nobody has done anything. Nobody wants to give up
anything or pay more for sustaining what they have. A variety of public opinion polls (if even true to
begin with) show Americans supportive of cutting government spending while at the same time showing
American do not want any program cut (when listing specifics). It seems the American people want to
have their cake and it eat too – real life does not work like that!
Most Americans don’t like taxes & hate cuts to the programs they like. Most American don't want
to give up any tax deductions, exemptions, or credits which from 2010-2014 cost a total of $3 trillion
while federal deficits were rising $1 trillion per year. How do you convince the American people that the
only way out is to either raise taxes, cut expenses, or a combination of both? Nobody wants to hear that
and certainly won't elect someone who acts on that. Most Americans would rather hear free stuff (goods,
services, etc.) & tax breaks and vote based on the politicians promising them that in competition with
each other to see who can promise more.
There is a reason Democracies always die in bankruptcy – because “the people” become corrupted
by their power and then vote themselves “free stuff” without anyway to pay for them. They become
corrupted and their emotion fueled ignorance prevents them from thinking about long-term sustainment.
Only short-term gratification pleases them. In a Republic, the people elect politicians who give and
promise them “free stuff”, whether it be goods, services, or tax breaks – thus the same problem as an
actual democracy. When you turn politics into a complete popularity contest, the politicians are too
tempted to speak and act in ways that are popular (which is not always right nor does it produce good
long-term results, especially with finances).
“Democracy will last until the public realizes that it can vote itself largesse (gifts/money) from the public
treasury!”
-attributed to Scottish historian Alexander Fraser Tytler
The vital signs of our Republic are not good and this is a reflection of the American people
themselves and what they have become in these past decades. The American people are becoming corrupt
(evidence of this is found in the politicians they elected into power – incumbents have had a 90% reelection rate for decades). It is time now for a rebirth, it is time now for national reform! This includes
revising the Progressive tax system.
Every American Must Contribute
There was a survey that came out in 2011 that stated 47 percent did not pay income taxes and 53
percent paid all the taxes instead. There are also surveys that claim the super-rich pay far less income
taxes then the middle class. Regardless if any of these are true or not, this is problematic, because
everyone should be paying their taxes whether rich or poor. Every American must put their share into the
system whether its $1 or $1 million, nobody should get away with paying absolutely nothing. No system
can sustain itself like that!
Should the rich pay higher taxes? (Technically under our current tax system they already do or are
at least suppose to) The short answer is yes, everyone should pay their fair share. Should the rich (or
anyone) have their wealth "redistributed" to provide “free” services and/or goods to those who do not put
into the system at all? The short answer is no, not at all. Our tax system must never be about supporting
those who never contribute a dime, but rather about fairness where everyone puts their fair share into the
nation which they each have access to its services, protection, and benefits.
“The public necessities must be satisfied; this can only be done by contributions of the whole society.”
-Alexander Hamilton, The
Continentalist VI, 1782
Ultimately every American will benefit. Nobody gets away with not contributing even one dollar.
Being wealthy is not the problem nor an evil, but rather it is the caliber of people who happen to be superwealthy at this current time. After all, many of the Founding Fathers where quite wealthy and yet were
ready to lay their lives down for this nation and its people! The poor are not the problem either. Often
times those of the “47 percentile” who do not pay income taxes do not have to pay because of the way the
system is set up, not because they are lazy or moochers. They are often very hard workers earning an
income, however, the way the tax system has been rigged, all the loopholes, credits, and deductions
account for more than the taxes they pay and therefore end up as zero income tax.
One of the major problems is the ruling establishment. The Republicans and their side of the
mainstream media have convinced their blind followers that the “poor” are to blame because they do not
pay taxes! The Democrats and their side of the mainstream media have convinced their blind followers
that the “rich” are to blame because they do not pay enough taxes! This is what they base their little
election campaigns on - Americans fighting each other over a false conflict between rich and poor. The
real problem is the way the income tax system is structured (which the politicians themselves structured)!
The problem of taxation is not the “poor” or the “rich”, the problem is the political establishment (both
Republicans and Democrats) who have corrupted the entire tax system!
Nevertheless, obviously we cannot have half the country paying nothing and the other half paying
something! We cannot have 15% paying nothing and 85% paying something! We cannot have even 1%
paying nothing! Rather all Americans must put their share in. Remember paying taxes is patriotic and
helps pay for schools, roads, defense, and other essentials!
But there is still that major problem, and that is of course, the ruling establishment. It does not
matter if the tax system is progressive, a flat tax, or a fair tax… our government under the political
establishment has proven themselves fiscally irresponsible, corrupt, and ultimately wasteful in all the
taxpayer dollars they receive. Less taxation is not going to solve our problems! More taxation is not going
to solve our problems! It does not matter how fair, just, or good a tax system is, as long as the government
under the two party establishment is corrupt and irresponsible with spending; it will fail and nothing will
be accomplished! The status quo of both parties must be removed! What will it take to have true tax
reform in this country? Nothing short of a revolution!