Wow! So #Trump is gonna eliminate the payroll tax! Interesting.

I personally think all taxes should be sales taxes. IMHO.

Why tax me twice? Tax me once and be done with it. Tax season sucks.

@realcaseyrollins The excise-only tax model is more popular than I think people realise, especially when they’re modeled right. Gas taxes pay for roads within the city/county/state, for example. It’s even better when the taxes are opt-in for the business rather than compulsory, but we can’t have too many good things.

@sev I feel like taxes should probably be compulsory, there'd be no incentive to pay them if they're optional.

@realcaseyrollins I think incentives could be devised, but for at least the foreseeable future, aye.

That said, I really am one of those :blobcatree:taxationsRtheft:blobcatree: folks, I swear.

@sev I think taxation is necessary but it needs to be as minimal and simple as possible. Why do we have to be taxed so many times? Why do we have tax brackets? The system must be undone.

@realcaseyrollins @sev what do taxes pay for that has to be funded coercively? That's the question you have to answer for taxation to be valid.

@agorabrewing @sev At least defense, I'd say.

@realcaseyrollins @sev let's think about that for a min. In our current situation, that means 325 million people funding the defense of this entire giant section of a continent (and not very well, illegal immigrants get in all the time) and I don't see any good reason why New York for example should fund or have a say in the defense of Texas. Take that to it's logical conclusion, I don't see why I should pay for or have a say in your defense or vice versa.

Take the current upcoming conflict (assuming they're not both in on it) between the US and China. *I* don't have any ill will or poor reputation with any particular Chinaman and would have no reason to worry about missile defense or any of that nonsense if it weren't for the US government's forays on my behalf into (potential) conflict with China.

So this comes to two points really: 1) even in defense, it's tough to prove any public good theory necessitating the use of taxation for funding and B) many of the reasons that defense Might be a public good are caused by the same organization that supposedly provides the service. It seems to me that such an organization that seeks your approval and funding would have every incentive to make up a reason (war) for you to fund them. Classic snake oil really.

@agorabrewing @sev Guess it comes down to whether or not you think the nation should have an army i guess