There's a common talking point about corporations not paying their dues. - A megacorp that pays 0% in income taxes still pays a ton of sales tax on things it b

There's a common talking point about corporations not paying their dues. - A megacorp that pays 0% in income taxes still pays a ton of sales tax on things it buys - Every employee pays income tax, sales taxes, income gains taxes on their investments, and eventually death taxes - The owners pay taxes on dividends received and capital gains in rising share prices, and all the same sales et al taxes as the employees on the remaining amount. - The economic activity generated by the 0% megacorp will create higher incomes for other corporations, all of whom are subject to the above taxes, and not all of whom manages to avoid all income taxes. The fact is that dodging tax is at best a temporary aberration. There are many financial tricks to delay and minimize taxes, but the government will always take its pound of flesh eventually. Also, at some point the owners of that money will spend it / gift it / die and then it gets taxed. Even in the USA, where these corporations are supposed to rule the roost, government spending as a % of the economy has been skyrocketing for the past century. Even if the government banned all income tax, they would stealth-tax us by issuing bonds and inflating the currency away. To boost their careers, top bureaucrats the world over need their headcount to keep growing, so they demand blank cheques from the productive with an air of moral sanctimony that's almost impressive. I fully support reasonable taxes to feed & educate the children of the poor and many other nice things, but the bureaucracy is a monster that never stops growing unless we make it. Something to keep in mind next time John Oliver goes on a rant.