Of course, it is much easier for me to make this statement as someone who will benefit from the Obama tax plan and not the McCain plan. I happen to fit in that whole under $250,000 a year thing just like the other 95% of America. The thing is, even if I were making $250,000+ a year, I really wouldn't mind paying my fair share. Sure, it might mean I take home a little less bacon every month. And no, I don't like paying taxes. But what we forget is that government is basically a gigantic non-profit organization. Non-profit organizations collect money in whatever way, be it donations or conducting business in their respective industries, pay off all of their overhead and then reinvest the money into the company. That's how government works. It collects taxes, it uses the money to fund programs, and whatever is left over (HA!), pays down debt/gives back in rebates. That's how it works.
Without taxes, there's no money to pay for programs, no money to pay government employees, no money to pay operating costs. There's no money to pay for anything. Paying taxes sucks something fierce. If I could, I wouldn't pay my taxes (more or less because I don't agree with how the money is being flushed down the toilet, not necessarily because I don't think it's necessary; another story for another day...maybe tomorrow). Taxes are essential. Taxes are what make government function. And whether you believe in big government or small government, whether you believe in no social programs or lots of social programs, no matter how you view the role of government in the every day lives of American people, nothing will function if government doesn't collect taxes.
Americans have this indiscriminate opposition to paying taxes. I assume it comes from this whole idea during the American Revolution that we should not be taxed without having a say in how much and for what. It has instilled this extremely deep-seeded notion that it is un-American and unpatriotic for a government to collect taxes and for Americans to pay them. Any mention of raising taxes is political suicide in this country, which is ludicrous. Government can't function without taxes. The wealthy, (insert deity) love them, they are often times very hard-working, intelligent individuals or families who have earned everything they have in hopes of providing the best life they possibly can for their families and children. But it does not stir up my sympathies and emotions to hear them complain about being hit with a tax increase, especially on capital gains (to be discussed later). A progressive tax scale is not un-American. Collecting money from the more well-to-do to help feed and provide healthcare and the basic necessities of life to those most in need of assistance is not un-American. I seem to recall there being something on our symbol of freedom resting in the waters below Manhattan about America accepting the tired, poor and hungry of the world because we are a country not concerned with the condition of one's being but of the strength of their character and our proud ability to pick them up from whatever degree of destitution and make them prosperous. We have lost our way. We are failing. The last eight years have shown what not "redistributing the wealth," appropriately, which an awful, inaccurate term for taxation, does for everyone except the wealthiest of the wealthy. Salaries for just about everyone are either stagnant or falling. New jobs have not been created. The list goes on, and for the sake of not being redundant, I will not elaborate on the social and economic troubles facing America because of the neocon administration.
To tackle some aforementioned things: Calling taxation the "redistribution of wealth" is misleading and inaccurate. If we were to redistribute wealth, we would take money out of the paychecks of the golden-parachute protected CEOs and, using the number of Obama's campaign, everyone making $250,000 or more, and hand it over to those making less than $250,000 to spend at their discretion. That is not what taxation does. It's never been the purpose of taxation. And if it ever does become that way, I will be one of the first to challenge it in and every way possible. The government does not redistribute wealth. The government collects taxes to pay for operation costs and programs. Are their programs that exclusively benefit the less well-to-do. Absolutely. Some may call me a bleeding-heart liberal. I like to think of myself as simply an independent thinker. In either case, having the government help people out who are having trouble getting by really doesn't bother me. In fact, I think it's fantastic. We should do it more. When the illegal drug trade is as profitable as running a Fortune 1000 company, something is wrong. Intervention is needed. But again, another story for another day. The point is that as part of the social contract, as part of being a citizen of this country, as part of having the opportunity to live here and work here and make your lives and fortunes here, part of all of that is contributing your fair share to the money pot to make sure everything works. Would it be amazing if everyone made lots of money and could equally pay the government? Absolutely. But that's not the case. Different people earn different amounts of money and thus have to pay different amounts. Unfortunate, but that's the way it works.
This proposal to raise capital gains tax is nowhere near as bad as it sounds. The people that earn capital gains are the people that own stock, options, etc. and that buy and sell real estate. Most, not all, but most of these people invest in real estate and stocks and taking on, to the average person, seemingly unnecessary risks because the money they invest is not money they need to live off of. If the money they invest disappears entirely, no one will be out of their homes or starving. The people earning capital gains typically can afford to pay a little more percentage-wise of their earnings.
To get back to the point, Americans need to get over themselves in regards to paying taxes. No one likes it, but it is necessary. The time has come, especially at a time when we, as a nation, have eclipsed $10 trillion (that's $10,000,000,000,000+) in debt, for people to start being responsible and paying their fair share. Patriotism in this country stemmed from defiance and service to one's nation. Whether people like it or not, paying taxes is part of that service.
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