Has America abandoned capitalism?

[isobars]

The Fair Tax ... the source of the 9-9-9 plan and its stated ultimate goal once the politics can be stripped from it ... has been studied to the tune of >$20M by the business/economics schools of Harvard, Wharton, and Stanford. No other tax system has ever been researched so thoroughly or praised so highly by such authoritative reviewers. It's not perfect, but it's light years ahead of anything else ever proposed, especially in its incredibly positive impact on taxpayers, the nation, and the world. None of us wankers here has anything close to the credentials to criticize it substantively, especially without studying it first. By now thousands of experts and millions of taxpayers have reviewed it and had the chance to voice their complaints and suggestions. Every gripe any of us could imagine has been identified, considered, fixed, and/or overshadowed by overall benefit. Our time is far better spent studying it rather than arguing about what we read about it in freaking media blurbs.

[keycocker]

here are tens of thousands of regs
That should make it easy to name a few big ones that will cause a huge boom in our business. I sell windsurf gear, Belize real estate,rent 8 houses in the US, run a high school and promote windsurf events in Maui.
Perhaps you could name several regs that we could change to promote one of my business or yours in a huge boom kind of way.
I don't like gov.either but man I can not come up with even one law to change that would make me boom out of those tens of thousands.
My taxes are the lowest in my life.

[MalibuGuru]

The thousands of regs are like the straw that broke the camels back. They each cost you pennies, that add up to thousands. Water heaters have doubled in price due to aqmd and epa rules governing emissions.

They have also offshored manufacture of windsurfing gear due to epa.

Contrary to the belief that wages are to blame, the manufacturing process is very automated and there are not many hours per board utilized. See this fascinating video of a CUSTOM board being made at close to the cost of production boards from overseas. http://www.youtube.com/NelsonFactory#p/u/0/ILiZtg45mjk

No, I don't want dirty air, but when we buy a board made in Thailand, the pollution is global. They just don't use all the epa gear Mark does. So, should we charge importers a pollution fee or deregulate our manufacturers? I'm ok with the fee..which is a tarrif...which increases cost.

[swchandler]

You might as well admit it Bard, under Cain's tax plans you'll pay a lot less in taxes to the federal government. You must be elated that there would be no tax at all for capital gains. Not surprisingly, in your own enrichment, you can easily turn your back on the fact it's very regressive in nature and would inordinately affect low and middle income Americans.

A real patriot? Not in my view.

[swchandler]

"They have also offshored manufacture of windsurfing gear due to epa."

That's not true. I have been buying US made boards for over 19 years at a very competitive price. But, I guess if you're interested in buying high volume production boards, your only choice is an offshore product made by cheap labor. Ultimately Bard, that's your choice.

[MalibuGuru]

[DanWeiss]

[keycocker]

" So, should we charge importers a pollution fee or deregulate our manufacturers? I'm ok with the fee..which is a tarrif...which increases cost."
I agree. Good idea.
That is the problem You and I oppose growth of gov.
Solving the problem this way adds another reg to the list, and buries another tax in my board.
My Nelson cost $2200 and he is just getting by at that price. Top shapers send him computer files and he can make a one off in his expensive CAD cutter shop about the same as one off from Asia WITH SHIPPING for one board about $3-400.
The board costs half as much to make in China because there is a lot a hand labor in a shop without a million$ in CAD milling machines.
These shapers then send the Nelson board to China to have them made. If there was another fee they would charge more and Nelson could make a living wage- if we are willing to accept higher prices and an expanded gov.
Many solutions I think would work involve added another tax, fee or reg....

[capetonian]

More fees = more regulation = doesn't really solve anything in my eyes.

In order to compete with the non-OECD world we will likely have to overhaul a large part of our society, including our tax regulations and our labor laws.
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/5dfe1400-0089-11e1-ba33-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1cCUY3y4s
While this is a British article, our labor laws are not far behind in their ridiculousness.

I think the EPA has too much power in this country, but at the same time I appreciate the cleaner air that I breathe and the cleaner water that I sail in compared to 30 years ago, so not all regulation should be thrown out, just the stuff that no longer makes sense in the modern world.

[capetonian]

Cain's tax proposal has merit, though it is not perfect. The aspects I like about it are that it will broaden the tax base by removing tax loopholes, and exposing all income to equal levels of tax. In order to adress the regressive nature of a flat tax, a 1st amount (say $75,000) of salary or pension income should not pay any tax. By limiting this exemption to salary or pension income, the tax benefit will accrue to Americans that actually contribute (have contributed) to the economy.

If by broadening the tax base we could realistically reduce the single rate to 15% I think both rich and poor will benefit.

Trying to manipulate the economy through tax deductions such as mortgage interest deductions / intangible drilling credits / investment tax credits theoretically is going down the same path as what the communists tried to achieve with their centrally planned economy.