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The big moral problem I have with a recurrent tax on assets like land or improvements on land (buildings) is that it erodes the fundamental right to private own
by throwawaysea 6y ago
The big moral problem I have with a recurrent tax on assets like land or improvements on land (buildings) is that it erodes the fundamental right to private ownership. What does it mean to own anything if policies can retroactively apply taxes to it or continually extract taxes and ultimately take that asset away from you? That’s simply not compatible with a free society and it amounts to theft in my opinion.
- dbcurtis 6y agoExactly. It's the feudal system implemented with different accounting methods. Landowners are turned into sharecroppers working for the government.
- arrosenberg 6y agoSeeing as land is limited, it's logical for governments to charge a rent on the most productive plots in order to maintain itself. I don't see how that erodes the fundamental right to private ownership. You can certainly find land with very low or no property or land taxes on it. You won't be anywhere near infrastructure, culture, food, or higher education, but your taxes will be very, very low. You are paying to participate in all the value-adding parts of society. It would only follow that improvements to the public common increases the value of your privately owned asset, and you should continue to pay your share of the upkeep based on the productive value of the land.