Yes, it's a wonderful system. By taxing at multiple levels, it greatly
multiplies the paperwork over a simple sales tax, thus acting as an
employment/economic activity booster. Only problems are that it raises
operating costs all along the production/distribution chain, thus
increasing the cost of things even before the tax, and increases the
number of taxing authority workers, thus requiring more tax income. Then
there are the secondary effects, the tree cutting, mining, oil use, air
pollution, etc. etc. for the paper, desks, buildings, pencils, vehicles,
computers, etc. etc. used by the people doing all that non-productive
work on both the private and government sides.
Of course, all the additional costs and taxes do nothing to increase the
value of those things that are taxed. Thus it will tend to raise the
cost of living and/or lower the standard of living relative to those
countries with lower taxes and/or lower collection/compliance costs. The
former will also tend to run out of natural resources faster than the
later, all other things being equal.
Voila ........ today's Econ. 101 lesson!
The nice thing about such taxes for USians like me is that I can file
forms and get it back after I get back from foreign climes. Of course
tourists here can't get sales tax back when they go home, but it is
generall significantly lower.
Moose
John Hudson wrote:
Voila ...... today's accounting and tax lesson!
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