When we willfully ignore equal protection of the law and don't know it

April 8, 8:17 PMHartford Conservative ExaminerJohn Talleos

Previous Next

4 comments Print Email RSS Subscribe

Subscribe

Get alerts when there is a new article from the Hartford Conservative Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use.

Email Address   Include other special offers from Examiner.com Terms of Use

    The argument over tax rates always focuses on the economics or fairness.  Lower tax rates are said to bolster economic growth especially on higher earners.   Fairness dictates that high earners ought to pay their fair share even if it means the percentage is above and beyond what everyone else pays to level the playing field.   

    There is a fundamental rule of law that is being ignored here.  The economic arguments will go on forever but tax laws are  unlike any other in that they are applied  unevenly.  If a poor person came up with a invention and became a millionaire of course that person would pay more dollars in tax even if his rate were the same but why pay more then that?   The invention could have made life easier for millions or people but because the person became wealthy the share of his income is taxed greater.  Its not as though the wealthy need more government then anyone else, why pay more for it?

  When one person pays a higher rate then another he or she is being levied an economic fine, a production and innovation speeding ticket.  Each law that is passed, everyone would agree, should treat everyone the same way.  Its called equal protection under  the law.  One person pays 28% of their income to taxes while another pays 35%, why?  Even if the rate were 28% for all the higher earner will pay more dollars in taxes but what is the legal rationale to pay the extra 7%.  

  Most people are not rich and it would be nice if all of us were.  But being rich means being in a class of society that is in a minority.  Since they don't have the votes it means that the rest of us could just out vote them and take their money.  It's difficult to look at this as a civil rights issue because after all these people are rich, they have everything.  Does that mean that we have to jettison our principles of equality under law.  If you go too fast on the highway and get caught you pay a fine.  If you make too much money you don't have to wait for a trooper to stop you just file your tax returns, your fine is built into the law.  No one has the right to anyone else's money or property and no one should have to be penalized for being productive.  Why do we accept that just because some people have more then others that we must ignore basic principles of  how laws are applied to citizens?