The Con Approach to Cutting Taxes

The Conservatives has created a myth that we pay too much as far as taxes go.  They’ve already slashed some of out more vital taxes.

The GST / HST tax was cut by a third, even though it’s been proven that a tax on consumption is something all civilized countries should have because it can be structured as a progressive tax for all, especially when it comes to collecting revenue from the rich.

Corporate income taxes have been slashed to a point where they’re some of the lowest in the world.  Despite this event under the Cons and previous Liberals, we haven’t seen the job or income growth that we were promised.  In fact, it’s been the opposite, hasn’t it?

And as corporations in Canada fail to take any burden of paying for all of their benefits, it should be obvious that personal taxes as a percent of the total would rise, other things being equal.

The failure of the Fraser Institute to understand and appreciate this basic math is mind bogglingly ridiculous.

In fact, the Fraser Institute repeatedly pounds us with poorly written reports designed for press release tidbits that we pay too much as far as taxes go and their latest is a coup in maximum idiocy.

Once the word is created by Con think tanks, regardless of whether r not the information is true or even makes sense, Conservative and Libertarian types go around every level of government doing their best to convince us that taxes are too high and that there are ‘gravy trains’ running rampant through City Halls and legislatures across the country.

Governments are simply too big.  We need to slash them, cut back on spending (unless its our buddies in the pharma business, oil barrons or defense contractors) and reduce public services to anemic levels, to the point where they have no option but to fail.

Research from Baylor University proves that this is all wrong.  They show that the countries with the biggest governments that are focused on economic justice for its citizens, income redistribution, progressive taxes and yes, efficient spending on services for people instead of supporting pseudo-corporate mouth pieces also result in populations of people who are the most happy.

It’s really no surprise, I suppose.

When people pay taxes, services should come in the form of public benefit.  Our current model is that people are paying taxes and the benefits come in the form of bigger dividends and contracts for private companies.

Alas, we continue with the pattern of the Cons waging war against wages and they have a simple answer and trite campaign promises to solve these mythical problems:  we pay too much in taxes so we will cut what the average citizen pays in taxes.

What the average citizen doesn’t realize is that when your income, salary and benefits get gutted by Conservatives, yes, you’re paying less in taxes, but only because you’re making a fraction of what you used to make.

Summary:

• People want lower taxes because we told you that you do
• We kill jobs
• We make you scramble for lower paying jobs
• You pay less in taxes as a result

Problem solved.

One day, someone with balls will remind all of us that it’s OK to pay taxes and demand services, so long as those services are for the good of the public.