Time to Pay the Bill

The Fiscal Times:

But just how flush is a family of four with a $250,000 income? Are they really “rich”? To find the answer, The Fiscal Times asked BDO USA, a national tax accounting firm, to compute the total state, local and federal tax burden of a hypothetical two-career couple with two kids, earning $250,000.

Interesting. Though, what's going to affect the average Joe is these terrible little taxes:

States and municipalities have been steadily raising income tax rates to help close gaping holes in their budgets. Property taxes are also increasing, even though real estate values have cratered. And sales taxes are hitting record levels, in some areas nearing 10 percent. Gas taxes, alcohol taxes and hidden surcharges on everything from airline flights, ferry rides, soda, vehicle registrations and rental cars have also been stealthily rising.

Politicians can only soak the rich for a while before they simply stop working or move. Then it really is the definitely-not-rich crowd which sees the higher taxes in the form of higher prices.

Comments

[Francis W. Porretto]

That's one of the reasons governments love the Value-Added Tax (VAT). By concealing the true extent of the tax bite, it deflects attention from the fraction of one's income that goes to the State rather than paying for the product, and so tranquilizes (temporarily) the subject population into remaining in place.

Of course, ultimately the VAT is as much a "house of straw" as any other technique for extorting the populace. It just allows the game to go on a little longer than other techniques...which is why politicians, who as a class have notoriously short time horizons, love it so.