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In most western countries these days the tax level effectively decreases with wealth, so no... they might not have contributed "disproportionately" already
by Nemrod67 3y ago
In most western countries these days the tax level effectively decreases with wealth, so no... they might not have contributed "disproportionately" already
- admissionsguy 3y agoThey would have contributed disproportionately in absolute numbers, which are the actual numbers that get stuff built. It is of little help to anyone to pay a 50% tax if you don't earn or have much to begin with.
- fwlr 3y agoImagine a government with eleven citizens, ten of which earn a thousand dollars a year and pay 50% income tax on each dollar, while the eleventh earns one million dollars a year and pays just 10% income tax on each dollar. If the government then spends every tax dollar on building a road, that road has been ~95% paid for by one citizen and ~5% paid for by the other ten. It’s quite possible in principle for the wealthiest people to pay a lower tax rate than poorer people, yet still contribute disproportionately to public funds. (In fact something like this dynamic is indeed happening in most Western countries, the top 1% usually account for more than one third of total tax dollars paid.)
- alanfranz 3y agoSuch one citizen still earns like 1000 other citizens. Fairness is hard to establish in an highly skewed distribution. Nevertheless, I genuinely think that modern governments need to shift taxation from earnings to wealth (especially regarding natural monopolies)