Its time for a national "Higher Optional Tax."

How this would work is by checking a box on your W-2 form and then putting a percentage (any percentage) in the space next to the check box. This tells your employer that you want some percentage voluntarily taken out of your paycheck each week.

This money you voluntarily give will be used specifically to help increase funding for federal social programs.

How does everybody feel about this idea?

And does anybody think liberals will be foaming with glee at the mouth when they hear that they will be able to do more to help the people they care about?


I like this idea. Very much. And I think that it would be even better if "choice" was added where you could choose on your W-2 form what social program you want your money to go. For example, I would love to give extra money to help sick babies and children get better. Others might choose to give extra money for abortions or prescription drug benefits.

Kramer

We already have optional support for social programs.

It's called charity.

Matt

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Of course your correct but I believe liberals would much prefer giving their money to the government than charity.

Kramer

Why limit it to social programes? I wouldn't mind kicking in some extra for the space program, or something else cool.

Sure, put it on there.

I'll never check it, so I don't care...

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AMEN! I agree with Matt, we already have charities. But yeah, put the box on there and I'll ignore it just as I do the one for the presidential thing and the box on my electric bill asking if I want to donate for their charity fund!

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I ignore that box myself. However, roughly half the US population are dems. And dems are the ones who are always pushing for higher taxes for more government handouts. They are also on record as saying things like "its our civic responsibility to take care of others." Well, if we give them the opportunity to give more of their own money (however much they want) to the government for social programs, then its almost guaranteed that most of them will pay. This could amount to quite a bit of money and might really make a difference in some social programs.

So dems, do you like this idea???

Kramer

Does that mean I also get to check a box to decide whether or not I want my dollars to fund Plan Colombia?

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"Jesus said: I have cast fire upon the world, and behold I guard it until it is ablaze."
Gospel of Thomas

I've always thought it would be interesting if, when filing your taxes every year, you got some sort of say in what your tax dollars would fund. Obviously, a complete say wouldn't be practical, but I'd feel better knowing that I was contributing to some programs over others. If impelemented, this could serve as a good referendum on public opinion of various programs. Of course, there are certainly a lot of problems with such an idea (not the least of which would be the incredible bureaucratic expansion required to do this), but I've always thought it was kind of interesting.

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"Government big enough to supply everything you need is big enough to take everything you have... The course of history shows that as a government grows, liberty decreases."

-Thomas Jefferson

Great! So do I get to say no tax dollars for "faith based inititives"? "Star Wars" Pork? Funding for Bush's war of lies? Tax breaks for oil monopolies? NIH research handed over to for profit drug companies so they can price-gouge the public?

Cool, I could get into that!

liberals love giving OTHER peoples money away......

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No individual can plan his own existence in their view.

So the state planners must arrogate to themselves the right to manipulate any sector of the economic system if the good of “society” or the “general welfare” is paramount.

Ipso- if the rights of the individual get in the way, the rights of the individual must be sublimated.

The Road to Serfdom
FA Hayek (interpretation)


Mortgage Backed Security survivor

I have also given this some thought. I agree it is inpractical, but that it would be interesting. I think the best that could be done would be to have, I believe it is called discretionary spending put into the control of the taxpayers. Considering the size of non-discretionary spending (ie soc.sec.) this would have limited impact, but with less budget power might decrease the motivation for lobbyists.

So do "conservatives."

For instance, they love giving my money to fund the civil war in Colombia.

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"Jesus said: I have cast fire upon the world, and behold I guard it until it is ablaze."
Gospel of Thomas

Excuse me but who has controlled congress for the last couple of years as the largest number of handouts has been given? Seems to me you have it wrong.

However I agree that if we are going to get to decide on how these taxes are spent we shold also get to decide on how our other taxes are spent. I for one want my money to go to the space program, R&D for energy technology, some to the military but only for domestic uses, quite a bit to infrastructure repair but only with a sunset clause that requires them to justify it every year. In fact I want sunset clauses on all my tax dollars so that whatever they go to the responsible agency has to justify how last years was spent and how next years will be spent. If I do not like what they are telling me then I just shift my tax dollars somewhere else or to deficit reduction.

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The universe grows smaller every day and the threat of aggression by any group anywhere can no longer be tolerated. There must be security for all or no one is secure... - Klaatu

Or how about the bridge to nowhere?

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The universe grows smaller every day and the threat of aggression by any group anywhere can no longer be tolerated. There must be security for all or no one is secure... - Klaatu