Before I get too "far afield" let me step back a second and apologize to Lee Arten for this hijacking of his thread. One thing has led to another, and another... and another... LOL!
Sorry Lee!

Noel... I'm so pleased to see you posting again here at JPF.
You mentioned that having a society requires funding in the form of taxation (there are other ways) but generally, I agree with you. Our problem here in the "states" is the interpretation of what constitutes fair taxation.

We are held hostage between two extremes and our nation has strayed far afield from what the founding fathers had in mind. Now we are a "nanny state." Our unelected judges have begun to legislate from the bench. The majority rule idea behind any democracy is a joke here.

I understand the need for checks and balances but if the will of the majority is ridden roughshod... the pastrami will begin hitting the mixmaster in short order. Even to the extent of revolution. Let us hope it is a peaceful one.

Then there is the idea that rich people should pay a larger percentage of taxes than anyone else. To my way of thinking, this is straight out of Karl Marx. I am not rich and I hate paying taxes because the proceeds will be squandered by a government hell-bent to drive a once great nation into abject poverty. Like Ray, I favor charity but not for deadbeats.

We should all pay the same percentage... regardless of income.
(Please refer to my earlier post if you are just now joining this topic.)

Our economic problems began to surface when Government Owned Lending Institutions (Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae) began to push lending to those poor unfortunates who could not qualify for a loan from any bank or agency. True, our government (again) forced banks and Credit Unions to begin playing this fools errand. Wall Street was sucked into the scheme at congressional insistence... and the collapse which ensued is history. Why, pray tell, should the Government be in the lending business in the first place?

Vote for me and I will padlock the doors of these two blood sucking behemoths, plus the IRS and several other useless government agencies. Additionally, I will move to change our constitution where judges, once they are appointed... will have term limits of no more than six years and will be forced to be elected (or not) by eligible voters for a second and final term. Next, I will privatize the US Postal Service. Our income tax system will be reduced to a simple percentage formula of 10% and the loopholes will be eliminated for everyone.

These are just a few of the things we need to get us back on track... where the American Dream is achieveable once again.