Originally Posted by aklim

If the cost of doing business goes up, what do you think happens? Unless it is your contention that you can tax the hell out of one end and nothing can or will come out the other? If it exists, calculate it, if you can. If you cannot, nothing else you use as a comparison is little more than cherry picking of facts.

I seem to believe that with these trick taxes, there is no way to really know if it is a significant decrease or what it really is. Take your own situation. Tell me exactly what you paid in product and what you paid in taxes, both direct and indirect. Compare and contrast with the 50s and tell me exactly what the change has been. Don't tell me the IRS numbers. Anyone can do that. Tell me down to the dollar. Even just counting that some places have a city tax and county tax makes it so difficult. What more when you have to track it all the way to the origin of the product. When you can, tell me the difference. Till then, saying the IRS rates lower the cost is meaning less since you don't really know what we had in TOTAL TAX to begin with and what we have in TOTAL TAX paid TODAY.