VATs by themselves are regressive, VAT + UBI would be highly progressive (or VAT + social spending like healthcare or housing). One thing that's kind of good t

VATs by themselves are regressive, VAT + UBI would be highly progressive (or VAT + social spending like healthcare or housing). One thing that's kind of good the US tax system is the tendency to produce large multinationals, since businesses here pay taxes on profits, it incentivizes them to keep growing, and now US companies dominate the world over. From a geopolitical perspective that's very valuable. But it does lead to monopolies and abuse.