Obama suggests value-added tax may be an option

[Immanuel]

Cigarettes are families now. I guess things have changed.

Get back to me when you care to have a legitimate discussion and have taken your head out of your ass.

Immie

A tax is regressive if a poor person must dedicate more of his income, by percent, to pay it than a wealthy person must.

If both pay the same PERCENT of income in tax, it is proportionate.

If the wealthy person pays a higher PERCENT of income in tax, it is progressive.

ALL sin taxes, sales taxes, excise taxes and the like are REGRESSIVE. No responsible tax pundit I know believes regressive taxation is socially just or desirable -- but sin taxes are a quick, easy way to raise revenues. This is why states with bad economies (and which one is good?) have been passing laws permitting casinos, so that more residents will gamble and the proceeds from gambling can be taxed.

And that is why I think a modified version of "The Fair Tax" would be the better way to go. If we made necessary items such as groceries that everyone has to buy non-taxable and increased the tax rate on "luxury" items then those who could not afford Fillet Mignon at Charlie's Steak House would, throughout the year, end up paying less on a percentage basis than those who could and those who could not afford to pay taxes could chose to buy what they need (non-taxable items) and pay taxes later when they could afford to do so.

Immie