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Politics : Politics of Energy -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Road Walker who wrote (22229)	7/27/2010 2:08:16 PM
From: Brumar89	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 86356

It is true that the income tax and the alternative minimum tax began as taxes on the "rich". And became taxes on the middle class as well. How can the rich pay the vast majority of taxes when they don't pay their taxes, as you claim? There are rich and there are rich. The mega-wealthy have a much greater ability to shift income in both time and location and defer recognition. As compared to the business owners, executives, etc that are "rich".

To: Road Walker who wrote (22229)	7/30/2010 3:51:31 PM
From: TimF	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 86356

How can the rich pay the vast majority of taxes when they don't pay their taxes, as you claim? The rich pay the majority of taxes. A handful of ultra-rich manage to make their tax burdens rather low, in our loophole and complexity filled tax system. With lower rates there would be less reason to spend time and money and lose flexibility with all these tax avoidance schemes and the ultra-rich would likely pay more in taxes (the mere rich might pay more or less depending on numerous factors), while wasting fewer resources trying to avoid taxation. Combining the lower rates with closing loopholes, reducing deductions credits etc. could be done in such a way as to make the burden on the wealthy tax payers less, while still bringing in as much or even slightly more to the government since it would reduce the deadweight loss of taxation.