What is "Everyone Pays Their Fair Share"

@bobmnu (8157)
United States
September 25, 2012 3:00pm CST
I keep hearing the Democrats talk about everyone paying their fair share yet all they talk about is taxing the rich. What do you think is a fair share for everyone over 18 years of age to pay for all money coming into them? Please give me a percentage and a reason why. What should be counted - just earned income, or dividends, Capital Gains, Welfare Payments, Social Security, Pensions, Food Stamps, Government Grants, etc?
2 people like this
9 responses
@laglen (19759)
• United States
26 Sep 12
I think a flat tax no matter what your income. Ten percent across the board. I guarantee that people would pay much better attention to the way politicians are spending our money. I find it funny (in a sad way) that every body screaming that the rich need to pay more, don't even question what Congress is doing with all of the money they already collect. People should be disgusted at the stupid things that they seems to think they should put our hard earned dollars into.
@laglen (19759)
• United States
26 Sep 12
Regarding the defense spending - We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and [b]secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. I put in bold where the defense comes in and italics where they should PROMOTE general welfare, not give it. That right there should explain the budget we don't have but should. REPUBLICAN Senator Tom Coburn puts out the Waste Book, here is the link http://www.coburn.senate.gov/public//index.cfm?a=Files.Serve&File_id=774a6cca-18fa-4619-987b-a15eb44e7f18 This may explain where our hard earned money goes
@laglen (19759)
• United States
26 Sep 12
crap my bold didnt work the way I wanted, but I am sure you get the point
• Mojave, California
26 Sep 12
We do, but we know the areas that need to be cut but the right wing politicians refuse to cut them. The major one being defense spending. You know how much money we could save by cutting defense spending in half. Then healthcare costs is the next big thing killing the budget. Maybe congress should work on healthcare ridiculous prices. You fix that we would not need to pay so much in taxes. Of course why fix it when we can just privatize everything because we know when you make peoples quality of living about profit that they will have are best interest at heart, and we know these people that are all about profit will never screw the American people to make a buck.
@lpipe0240 (1161)
• United States
25 Sep 12
I think the whoe tax system need revamped. Lets face it, we should ALL have to pay taxes regardless of how little we make. It frustates me when people colloct money from the government and feel they are entileted to with no sense of responsiblity.
• Mojave, California
25 Sep 12
How many people do you personally know who do this? People do pay taxes no matter how little they make. Show me a person that makes some kind of money even if it is a under table job. I guarantee they pay some kind of taxes on something.
@bobmnu (8157)
• United States
26 Sep 12
Everyone pays some taxes but we are talking about Federal Income Tax. President Obama keeps talking about the rich paying more income tax by saying everyone should pay their fair share. So I ask what is the fair share of Income tax that everyone should pay?
• Mojave, California
26 Sep 12
Maybe we should let all rich people tell us what they think is fair for them. I am not just talking about just Mitt Romney's of the world but every rich person. I have heard many rich people say they have no problem paying a bit more in taxes. I know when Mark Cuban was on Bill Maher, he said, he "would not even notice" if his taxes were raised from 36 percent to 39 percent. Of course he is one of the richer people in America, but I think if I has a couple hundred mil laying around, then I would probably wouldn't notice either. I tell you what Bob pay me $250,000 a year and I would have no problem paying a 39 percent Federal income tax rate. I can't even comprehend what it is to make $50,000 a year let alone $250,000 thousand a year. I am sure many Americans feel this way, so I do not know what the big deal is. It is really sad so many are making such a big beef out of this when so many of us are struggling.
@cripfemme (7698)
• United States
8 Oct 12
I am on disability income and self-employed. I also get food stamps and Medicaid, I would be willing to surrender Medicaid if I could get on regular insurance and have all my impairment related needs met. You may not know that for every two dollars away in I earn in employment they take $1 of my disability money. I think earned income and interest or investment value should be counted. This will allow people to avoid falling below the "floor" President Obama mentioned in the debate. I also don't think school grants, scholarships, or student loans should be counted as that tax will not allow some people to attend college and better themselves. I would be willing to pay 25% of my total earned income in taxes to help my country. It's the least I can do.
• Saint Kitts And Nevis
17 Jul 13
wow!!!!!!!! that is commendable
@clrumfelt (5490)
• United States
25 Sep 12
Everyone should pay 5% in taxes and everything above should be included.
@bobmnu (8157)
• United States
26 Sep 12
I can live with that or even 10%.
1 person likes this
@elmiko (6630)
• United States
29 May 13
i really couldn't give you a good answer since it would be off the top of my head. one of the best ways i can think of for people to pay their fair share would be to close all the loopholes and have a flat tax. i feel the democrats think were naive by talking about taxing the rich so much. do they think thats all we care about?.
@elmiko (6630)
• United States
21 Jul 13
well, it would be good to go after the wealthy who are hiding taxable income on offshore accounts.still, I don't think we need to go down the road of the French President who tried to tax the super wealthy 75% of their income.
• Saint Kitts And Nevis
17 Jul 13
why not target the wealthy. there are fewer rich than the number of poor or middle class citizens
@mensab (4200)
• Philippines
25 Sep 12
there are ways where everyone can pay their fair share of what they earn to the government which is expected to return whatever the citizens pay through social services and infrastructure. i have no problem with paying my dues but i have to feel that my payment is somehow returning to me though services and other goods.
• Saint Kitts And Nevis
17 Jul 13
I think that the government should try to spend the tax monies they are receiving wisely. this will help to prevent over taxation, regard of which aspect of the country is being taxed. Everyone will gain, even the government. its not the plan, it all boils down to management.
• Saint Kitts And Nevis
17 Jul 13
or is being spent wisely. I am with you 100 %
@stealthy (8181)
• United States
25 Sep 12
It is hard to come up with really good percentages. But one that I sorta remember is that something like 1% of the people pay something like 99% of the taxes; for some of these people the percent of their income that they pay may be lower than people who make a lot less but the amount they pay is tremendously higher. I am in no way to be considered rich; my total income is much less than many very common jobs that people hold, especially in say school administration and things like that. A large part of my income is from dividends because when I had a job, I have been unemployed for over 20 years, I saved and invested. So for those over 20 years, I never took a penny of unemployment and lived off of my investments, mainly from dividends. If Obama got his way to raise taxes on people with incomes over $250,000($200,000 if single), it would not affect me as long as the current tax rates on dividends and capital gains, of which I have had few for some time but have had loses instead. The problem with taxing dividends is that in many cases the money that people have saved and risked in investments is being taxed again after they have paid taxes on it when earned. The other thing is that the companies paying out the dividend have already paid taxes on their earnings from which the dividends are paid; so there is a lot of double taxation. So what is a fair share? The present state of things and what the Democrats want to be even more is as follows: If one saves and invests, one is punished for having common sense and living withing their means. Those who are like the government and spend above their means and do not save and invest get a free ride.
@bobmnu (8157)
• United States
26 Sep 12
Part of the Presidents tax plan is to increase the the tax on dividends and Capital Gains. Somehow he thinks that people will continue to take risks and invest to lose more money in taxes. When you reduce the Capital Gains and Dividend tax you increase the amount of money collected in taxes. Why because people are willing to pay taxes as long as they are making money. Many people think that if you raise the tax rate you will get more revenue but somehow it doesn't work that way in the real world.
@bestboy19 (5478)
• United States
25 Sep 12
I can think of only one way for everyone to pay their fair share, The Fair Tax, HR 25.
@HomeBase (1153)
• United States
25 Sep 12
I'll be honest about the whole thing and say that I have absolutely no idea.