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You acknowledge it is an oversimplification, but is it even true? Taxes have shifted around, but in aggregate, they haven't been slashed. Taxes as a percentage
by NoPiece 12y ago
You acknowledge it is an oversimplification, but is it even true? Taxes have shifted around, but in aggregate, they haven't been slashed. Taxes as a percentage of GDP were 26% in 1979, 26.4% in 2012, and haven't fluctuated more that a couple points. There has been some deregulation since the 80, but there also has been massive regulation. Yes banks escaped regulatory oversight, but the vast majority of businesses deal with greater regulatory burden that was present 35 years ago.
- breakyerself 12y agoIt's about who is paying the taxes. Top marginal tax rates were incredibly low until recently and still are much lower than they were 50 years ago. Also the share of the taxes being paid by business is lower than post WWII. I don't know how you think regulating coal is going to keep the economy safe. Different industries are regulated for different reasons. The financial industry is regulated to protect the rest of the economy from the irrational behavior of investors.It's pretty significant to the subject were discussing.
- NoPiece 12y agoEven though the top rate in 1979 was 70%, the effective marginal tax rate on the top quintile was 27.6%, which is pretty close to what it is now. It isn't meaningful to just compare the historic top rate because the tax code was different, and allowed for larger deductions, with a lower minimum tax. I don't think coal regulation is particularly important one way or the other. The problem is that as industry with influence, like finance, were able to escape legitimate regulation, the total amount of regulation on business has roughly doubled since the mid 70's, which is a drag on the size and resilience of the economy.