What do you guys think about the FairTax , i wasn't familiar with the details of it until I read up on a particular (D) candidate for president.

I am not convinced that its THE solution to our economic problems, but I think it might be worth discussing.

IMO, its a strange idea... because people would have more money, but it cost of living would increase. Could this be a way for our country to restore the middle class?

like I said, i'm not convinced either way on this one... just curious as to your thoughts.

Is that the one the libs wont let pass, because then the rich will stop paying the majority of all the taxes and all the poor leeches will have to put in at least a few hundred bucks a year?

Yes and No...

It would force the middle/lower class to spend their money on essentials instead of luxery items that they cant afford. Instead of being taxed on your earnings and your spending, you would only be taxed on your spending but the taxes on items would be about double.

also, instead of a return from the IRS each year, you get a prebate check for the essential items you had to buy (ie. milk, bread, daily staples)

I may be thinking of something else then... which one is the one where the top 5% stop paying 50% of the taxes?

not sure, I think I remember kerry totin that one around a few years back....

Wouldnt suprise me, he totes everything around, but only unveils certain shit to certain audiences.

"What? A meeting of veterans and war supporters? "Why im John Kerry! I supported the war! I support the troops! I want to destroy terrorism! Look at my purple hearts!"

2 hours later at the democrat town hall meeting:

"Why I am John kerry! I Voted aginast the war! Wrong war wrong time! I think you need to do good in school or else you get stuck in Iraq hahahahahah! that was a joke, but really fuck you lame brained soldiers haha morons!"

kerry was a dick, but better than a bush.

Must be why he won. Thats the humor in all that... lol as "bad" as Bush is made out to be by all the little leftists the USA said: hmm... sKerry or Bush? sKerry or Bush?.. yeah Bush.

Thus discouraging people from spending their money, thus killing the economy, thus a bad idea. When money becomes stagnant things go downhill.

why does it discourage people from spending their money, they have more money to start w/... and if you figure out the numbers, lets say you are getting taxed 22% on your earnings and you are paying an average state tax of 6%.... you are losing 28c on every $.

now imagine that the tax on items is 20%... you are still getting charged 8% less.

im no math genius, and my grasp of the whole idea might be skewed... but thats how I understand it.

They have more money to start with, but only as long as they don't actually buy things. In a system without a sales tax but with an income tax, they're not punished for buying things; in fact, being able to write a great number of expenditures off their taxes encourages spending.

In the system where you have no income tax, but a sales tax, however, they're losing money with each expenditure- each purchase becomes a greater financial burden.

They can lose just as much under the first system as the second, but within the system, in the first they're still inclined towards buying things, whereas the second makes them inclined to try and hold onto their money to preserve those artificial savings.

Maybe they shouldn't buy so much then.

I think thats kind of the point.

Uh, why? If people don't buy shit, the economy doesn't work. We want people to be wanting to buy as much shit as they can, so they have more incentive to work harder and produce more to get paid more to go and buy more shit that someone else produced.