Comment: Sirs, It appears that the panel has already made up its mind to scrap the present tax system with a means to increase the taxes paid by the common people of the US as opposed to the wealthy ones. The present tax system has served the people of the US for nearly 100 years, however, it has been compromised by efforts by the most influential people to exempt themselves from certain provisions that exempt or minimize the taxes these people pay. Rather than remove and revamp the present system to remove these tax abuses, this Tax reform panel is an additional effort to continue this policy. I having saved and economized throughout my lifetime and have accumulate an estate far beyond what I felt I would ever accumulate when I was a much younger man. In the process, I paid the income taxes that were due at the time. Now that I am at retirement age, you are now attempting to change the system of taxing the American people so that they are taxed on the basis of what they spend rather than what they earn. If you look at the European Model of taxation similar to what you are proposing you will find that they European people have the greatest incentive to avoid taxes and even with a extensive tax collection network in most European countries, tax avoidance is rampant. Another reason I feel your proposals will be unfair and rejected by the American people, is that the public has not saved enough for retirement as it is and putting in these proposals will on only make this problem worse as they will have less to save. I, personally, feel the system you are proposing is unfair as that I paid the Income Taxes on the income I made throughout my lifetime and now you wish to tax the savings I have accumulated as I spend it in retirement. I assure you will loose one Republican voter who will do everything in he can to defeat Republicans who so blatantly propose such proposals contrary to the welfare to the common American. While Lincoln and Republicans should be credited with "freeing the slaves" after the Civil War, they ended up loosing the support of many of the Americans because of their actions after the war. I feel this could be same result if the Republican Party so blatantly passes such an anti-common person proposal such as what you are proposing. Jim Neu |