Thanks for the comparison, but you do understand the difference of fair taxation? Everyone should pay the same rate, it should not be so slanted to discourage you to earn or achieve more. The original intent of "income tax" was just that, income earned by work, not from investing in the country and growth of the GDP. Why can't we have a single flat tax for everyone, it would be equal, not fair, but what tax is truly fair?
I would not mind paying even an effective 25% tax, if everyone did like in many other countries. But in the USA, we (<1%) get to pay a much higher rate and the majority of the taxes, while the majority get to pay an effective rate so much lower. The tax structure penalizes those who work and are productive in favor of those who work less and are far less productive, or do not work at all. I am appalled how what I thought was a fair system, has now become a free ride for many paid for by the few. To answer one, I would rather live in Uruguay. Everyone gets a fair education, and tax is not overly weighted to those who have a true work ethic. Norway is also a fair state, they tax fairly and everyone shares in the wealth of the resources held by the country. Only in the USA do we get to pay a significantly higher share, for a marginally higher income. There are ways to be fair to those who have worked so many years to earn their standard of living. Taxing them, at the time they deserve the reward is unfair.
We are not the billionaires, we are those who are the working class that earned every Nickle, paid the tax along the way, and are now being taxed even more since we were smart enough to invest for 40 years or more.
The tax laws have been manipulated by interest groups leaving the true working class earners/achievers to pay the brunt of tax collected. How can anyone think the NIIT tax is even close to fair for those who invested in employing so many for so many years. Why is it fair to tax someone 20% to 30% more than others, just because they worked for it. It makes me want to gift it all to my children and be on the take like the many who scam on the ACA insurance and other programs poorly designed to promote manipulation of income. It is a total joke.
Next time you go to the store to buy milk just be thankful its not 2030 when they will evaluate your ability to pay and that 1/2 gallon will be 4x more if you can pay it. I am serious that day is coming as the current tax system is driving this very method. OH, why not tax the wealth of those with IRA's and Pension assets/ There is a lot of money out there and why should it not be spread to those who did not earn it, what makes you so special.
Or maybe you will be in the lucky margin where you get milk for free and pay no taxes, but are still allowed to travel with the money you are allowed to keep from your retirement because it is not worth going after. Who should decide what that amount is? Let me vote first. I think if you are eating tuna and not cat food, its OK, have the free milk, but then if you are able to buy swordfish we should make you pay so much more for any milk you need. Sure sounds fair to me. Lets put a NIIT tax on that milk so those eating cat food can get free milk with their heroin.