Mike Gravel & Fair Tax Act

Hahahahahahahaha. Wait …. hahahahahahaha …. mmm …. hahahahaha. My side aches. Okay, where's the composure? Seriously folks.

Mysterious experienced politician, anti-war warrior, fair tax and direct democracy advocate, yelling the nukers are here, the nukers are here - Mike Gravel - appears out of nowhere.

Gravel, the latest "man of the people" supports the FAIR TAX. Pols have tried to pass this tax bill before.

There is so much fluff and fraud in this tax method (and Gravel) I don't know where to begin. It may take days/weeks of blogging. If you read no more than the above links it seems obvious the "fair tax" will be a better way of bending Joe over without all the yearly IRS paperwork involved. Big Daddy Guvmint will not bend Joe over every payday, but the City, County, and State enforcers get the job.

FAIR TAX allows for States to collect a little bit for themselves as payment for collecting and sending taxes to the Feds. We have exorbitant city, county, and State screw-u tax where I live now. When I leave home to do the weekly shopping I bend over and back out the door.

FAIR TAX: "To preclude any citizen from paying the FairTax on the basic necessities of life, a Rebate check is sent (in advance) each month. Also, called a "Pre-bate" check. The amount of the Rebate is determined by Family size (not income) and is calculated by multiplying the annual Poverty Level (as established by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services) times 23%, then dividing by 12 to determine the monthly amount of the "Pre-bate" check."

Basic necessities are shelter, food, medicine, clothing. A government check for everyone. Now who would bite the hand that feeds them in advance? Who among the lower, working, and middle classes will knock the status quo if they be gettin' a check every month? A dependent of the Federal government. Many folks, currently living at, near, or around poverty level and millions in the middle wouldn't dream of refusing a rebait check. They will never rock the boat, buck the system, fight the power, or challenge anything the Government does – they will think they need that monthly check.

For millions, filing a tax return is already a yearly EIC bonus bait of 2, 3, 4 or 5K; to buy a used car, pay off those payday predatory loans, a new computer, etc. These folks are already getting a "prebait" from Big Daddy Guv, or as I call it – the Master's Bait. The current system works fine for millions of lower to middle income folks. Just keep a check of some kind comin' in. Rebate or bribe. A cheap method for control of the piddling masses.

Millions of folks, living paycheck to paycheck, will wait for the prebate, spending more on non-necessities because the guvmint rebait check will take care of this month's necessity. It will feel like free lunch money once a month.

Me, I wouldn't mind a fair tax/rebate. I'm frugal. I could invest that monthly check in other income producing projects/hobbies. Everything we own is paid for and grandpa's generational trust guarantees the grandkids' future. That check could go to the vacation fund. Bring rebait on Big Guv. I could be ziplining in Costa Rica on your dime.

And the Fair Tax eliminates corporate taxes. "Dramatically reduces the price of new products and services, estimated at 20-25%, because corporations no longer need to hide these costs in the retail prices that are now passed on to consumers."

Yessirree, products and service prices will be reduced by 25 percent. Those big lovable corporate lunks will never again plump up dividends with hidden costs to Joe Consumer. Hahahahahaha. Please, stop, what a show.

It was under Poppy Bush that politicians decided a "luxury tax" would be "fair." Higher "sales tax" on yachts, automobiles, private planes, furs, jewelry - over a certain price. The yacht, fur, diamond industries lobbied - and rich people bought their luxuries overseas. The projected revenue from the luxury tax never happened. Poppy lost reelection.

What would happen to all the wealthy tax sheltered exemptions disguised as do-good institutions and families/friends hand-me-down foundations if we did away with the income tax? If there was no tax benefit to giving money away would the wealthy give it away? Solely for PR? The wealthy I have known would not donate a dime if not rewarded in some financial manner at the end of the photo-op. Wealth can be addictive – how high can the net worth numbers go.

When Joe Blow is paying 23 percent sales tax on a compact fuel efficient painted tincan car and a coat from Wal-Mart, from what nation will the wealthier folks buy their cars, furs, jewels? You think the wealthy will avoid the FAIR TAX? It's not as though they have to buy a car every couple of years to get to work, or particle board furniture, or a diamond from Zales, etc.

Remember, taxes have always gone up for the little people. How quickly would the FAIR TAX rise to 25 percent, 28 percent, 30, 40? Think the wealthy will buy in America to fund those rebate checks for Joe?

Mike Gravel, same shit and shinola politician. Polishing.

What some fear is the idea of no income taxation below a certain level. Nor do I hear anyone proposing that no human being needs mega millions or billions – instead the claim is the wealthy among us have "earned" it. Earned it because they were savvy, sharp, smarter, more talented. Yep, never mind that inheritance, "family" connections, corruption, government contracts, wars and slave wage labor made these men and women super rich – they "earned" that money. And billions of other can crawl along waiting for the end. (Mises also has an older article on the fair tax.)