Originally Posted By: itguy08
I think we should do away with all taxes, make SS an opt-in program you do at 18 or 21 and make a national tax on all purcahses. That way everyone has skin in the game and what you pay is directly porportional to what you spend. The poor buy cheap stuff and pay little. The middle buy average stuff and pay an average rate. The rich buy expensive stuff and pay a large rate.
But everyone would opt out so they could buy houses and the price of houses would just jump to meet that. The "landed" crowd who owns that property already would make out like bandits. Then in 50 years when those kids retire, they'll whine about making a mistake not opting in and get covered somehow anyway.
Though I agree on the consumption tax, there is a huge underground cash economy WRT labor and a consumption tax at easy chokepoints (fuel, for example, but not the only one) would catch those cheats.
As for Walmart, they need to remix it up. Most shoppers hate them but go there pragmatically, WM needs a 2nd honeymoon to rekindle the love. Every once in a while WM jerks the strings on staples (peanut butter, bread, soup, etc) to make an obscene profit and people usually put up with it, assuming inflation is at fault. This dismal first quarter shows that people are getting smarter to this game.