(01-28-2021 10:42 AM)OptimisticOwl Wrote:  

(01-28-2021 10:09 AM)RiceLad15 Wrote:  

(01-28-2021 10:06 AM)OptimisticOwl Wrote:  

(01-28-2021 10:00 AM)RiceLad15 Wrote:  

(01-28-2021 09:51 AM)OptimisticOwl Wrote:  I shall call them tax breaks; I leave it to the spin doctors to call them subsidies or loopholes.

There can be multiple reasons for tax breaks. You name one, to encourage certain activity. Some examples would be credit for Electric Vehicles and the mortgage interest deduction.

Other reasons could be to recognize certain difficulties that could be found in a given business(fishing or mining), or certain costs that might not otherwise be handled correctly (depletion, R&D, Depreciation)

Sometimes it could be a desire on the part of certain elected officials to help out an industry from one's state or a donor to one's campaign.

All of these could be eliminated by enacted the Fair Tax and getting away from this archaic system of reward and punishment we call the graduated Income Tax.

Sure, but that doesn't really touch on the point you were making and I was refuting.

People can be against a specific tax break and not against tax breaks in general. So there is nothing hypocritical, or even notable, about supporting the ending of :insert tax break here: while support the mortgage interest deduction.

Any btw, all the "other reasons" you listed are just another way of saying encouraging an activity to take place.

I guess I am unclear as the point I was making (and that you are refuting). Please clarify.

So the medical deduction is there just to encourage people to see doctors and buy medicine?

"Anything that results in less tax is a subsidy.

Or so they say as they deduct their mortgage interest."

I took this to a swipe at people who were against fossil fuel subsidies but were OK with taking the mortgage interest deduction.

I guess in a way it is -they call the FF tax breaks subsidies, but not the homeowner tax breaks, and the hypocrisy/blindness of those who do not acknowledge the similarities dazzles me.

Of course, some have pointed out that tax breaks for homeowners are all "tax breaks for the rich" as poor people cannot afford to own homes.

Of course, the counter to that is "only rich people pay (federal income) taxes, so every tax break is a tax break for the rich".

And once again, these problems, as some see them, could be eliminated with the Fair Tax, which is really my point and which you have not and cannot refute.

Yep, those issues would be gone with a flat tax. It would then create other issues.

There's no perfect solution, it's all about balancing pros and cons and striving to implement the best solution.