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From: Paul S Person <psperson@old.netcom.invalid>
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.written
Subject: Re: the future long term financial apocalypse of the USA
Date: Wed, 29 May 2024 09:12:16 -0700
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On Tue, 28 May 2024 11:51:23 -0700, The Horny Goat <lcraver@home.ca>
wrote:

>On Thu, 23 May 2024 02:24:03 -0400, Kevrob <kjrobinson@mail.com>
>wrote:
>
>>>> OTOH, sending every adult in the country, say, $4K/mo and then =
taxing
>>>> the heck out of any income over $48K might work. Particularly as
>>>> people lose interest in working and robots take over their jobs. It
>>>> could even use a single rate, applicable to all, since those not
>>>> making very much would be making their $48K ($96K for married =
couples,
>>>> of course, plus $48K for each dependent). At last! A single-rate
>>>> proposal that everyone can support!
>
>Sounds like Huey Long's old proposal (smaller numbers of course given
>it was the 1930s - and over a certain amount he wanted to tax 100%)

I have sometimes toyed with the idea that, given such a scheme, the
tax rate should be set at /what is needed to balance the budget/ plus
pay 10% of the National Debt off. But there are obvious problems:

1. Actually paying the National Debt off might not be that good an
idea. But paying it down to a reasonable goal might be.
2. Republicans would squeal like stuck pigs. OK, /that's/ nothing new,
but the National Debt is their only weapon to destroy Social Security
with, and actually reducing it is something they would never tolerate.
3. Democrats wouldn't use the extra to pay off the National Debt;
they'd just spend it. Eventually, the rate needed would exceed 100%,
which is clearly a non-starter.

So, while what I proposed above might help with some things, it won't
help with others. OTOH, in 100 years, say, when 99% of current jobs
are held by machines, /some/ method of keeping the Rest of Us alive
and distributing the goods will be needed.
--=20
"Here lies the Tuscan poet Aretino,
Who evil spoke of everyone but God,
Giving as his excuse, 'I never knew him.'"