Topaz Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 The Sun, is saying that the tax credits that \harper has and want to put into action if he wins aren't a very good idea and not good for the economy. As one person commenting at the bottom of the article said, if Harper has done so well with tax credist, why don't I feel it? Good question. Harper keeps saying HE and only HE can keep Canada's economy in good shape, stay the course...... yeah right, Canadians only have to review the government finances to know different. http://www.edmontonsun.com/2015/08/24/harpers-tax-credits-bad-policy Quote
PIK Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 Link does not work. So tax credits are bad , which means raising the taxes like the other 2 are good? Quote Toronto, like a roach motel in the middle of a pretty living room.
Shady Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 Generally I don't like the idea of tax credits. Quote
cybercoma Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 One of the biggest problems with tax credits is that it grows the bureaucracy because it becomes cumbersome and costly to enforce the tax code and ensure people are filing properly. So it simultaneously reduces federal revenues, while increasing expenses. It's terribly poor fiscal management. Quote
Smallc Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 I don't like the way the Conservatives have handled the tax code. Quote
-1=e^ipi Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 Unnecessarily complicating the tax code is generally not a good idea. Quote
WIP Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 Bad. Quote Anybody who believers exponential growth can go on forever in a finite world is either a madman or an economist. -- Kenneth Boulding, 1973
Black Dog Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 Tax credits make a lot more sense when you dispense with the idea that they are about the economy. Quote
cybercoma Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 Just so. Tax credits are about elections, not the economy or what's best for Canada as a whole. Quote
Vancouver King Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 (edited) Let's ask seniors on GIS who can no longer afford their prescriptions what they think of tax credits; let's ask northern indigenous citizens sifting garbage dumps for food what they think of tax credits, let's ask hundreds of thousands of young job seekers unable to find meaningful work what they think of tax credits. Why must every measure proposed by this gov't be directed at those who really don't need them? Edited August 25, 2015 by Vancouver King Quote When the people have no tyrant, their public opinion becomes one. ...... Lord Lytton
PIK Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 Let's ask seniors on GIS who can no longer afford their prescriptions what they think of tax credits; let's ask northern indigenous citizens sifting garbage dumps for food what they think of tax credits, let's ask hundreds of thousands of young job seekers unable to find meaningful work what they think of tax credits. Why must every measure proposed by this gov't be directed at those who don't really need it? My elderly parents never paid for theirs. They had no plan. I would ask the seniors in ONT can they afford to heat their house and eat at the same time. Thanks to the most corrupt ONT government. Quote Toronto, like a roach motel in the middle of a pretty living room.
Black Dog Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 My elderly parents never paid for theirs. They had no plan. I would ask the seniors in ONT can they afford to heat their house and eat at the same time. Thanks to the most corrupt ONT government. What does this have to do with the subject at hand? Cut out the thread drift, eh. Quote
On Guard for Thee Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 What does this have to do with the subject at hand? Cut out the thread drift, eh. Seems to be becoming more common. When the going gets tough federally, the rightys head for Ontario. Quote
WIP Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 Let's ask seniors on GIS who can no longer afford their prescriptions what they think of tax credits; let's ask northern indigenous citizens sifting garbage dumps for food what they think of tax credits, let's ask hundreds of thousands of young job seekers unable to find meaningful work what they think of tax credits. Why must every measure proposed by this gov't be directed at those who don't really need it? Tax cuts have been the go-to strategy ever since Reagan and his libertarian strategists got a hold of the reigns of government in the US.....everyone else on the right....wherever they live, are just copying that strategy. Tax cuts are the way to look concerned about people's welfare while not only doing nothing for the majority - also starving government of revenues needed to pay for social programs, infrastructure and even military....but we know where the cuts hit first! Sometimes there are situations where taxes have increased too much and a tax cut is justifiable. But I haven't come across one that looks valid since the days of the Harris Conservatives here in Ontario. In many places, like the state of Kansas is a notable US example, the tax cuts are killing the local economy, because even business knows that the low tax rates don't justify investing in a state with dismal and failing infrastructure and services. Quote Anybody who believers exponential growth can go on forever in a finite world is either a madman or an economist. -- Kenneth Boulding, 1973
Big Guy Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 (edited) It is a basic political phiosophical question. Those who pay taxes (those who are earning fair money and pay a lot in taxes) get some of their money back in tax credits. Those who do not make enough money to pay taxes get little or nothing. I believe it all comes down to how an individual feels our society should function. Should those with money share their earnings with those who do not. There are some people who feel that there should be a large (relatively) guaranteed income for all Canadians. Others feel that those who cannot support themselves should die or disappear or ... Most of us are in between those two positions. I do believe that government subsidies should be means tested. There are too many folks out there who are accepting tax money when they do not need it. Edited August 25, 2015 by Big Guy Quote Note - For those expecting a response from Big Guy: I generally do not read or respond to posts longer then 300 words nor to parsed comments.
Civis Romanus sum Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 I think that taxes are too complicated as it is. I would prefer a simple, flat tax along with a VAT. Quote
msj Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 It is a basic political phiosophical question. Those who pay taxes (those who are earning fair money and pay a lot in taxes) get some of their money back in tax credits. Those who do not make enough money to pay taxes get little or nothing. Some truth to this. But you forget the other reason for tax credits: because a tax deduction saves the rich fat cat tax at his top marginal tax rate (45% in BC) while a tax credit saves tax at the lowest rate (15% federal and about 20% combined in BC if BC also goes for the tax credit). So, tax credits prevent people from crying out " you favour the rich" when taxes are cut. Doesn't make tax credits any less stupid, mind you, since a cut in the lowest federal tax rate from 15% to 14% would be quite beneficial to all who pay taxes while not complicating the system any further and not leading to the retention of agents getting paid to look at receipts to ensure that they are proper and meet all the requirements. Quote If a believer demands that I, as a non-believer, observe his taboos in the public domain, he is not asking for my respect but for my submission. And that is incompatible with a secular democracy. Flemming Rose (Dutch journalist) My biggest takeaway from economics is that the past wasn't as good as you remember, the present isn't as bad as you think, and the future will be better than you anticipate. Morgan Housel http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2016/01/14/things-im-pretty-sure-about.aspx
msj Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 I think that taxes are too complicated as it is. I would prefer a simple, flat tax along with a VAT. A flat tax is not necessary to simplify the system. The system could be made way simpler by making capital gains taxes the equivalent as interest/wage income and eliminating most tax credits while lowering the tax rates to offset some of these changes. Quote If a believer demands that I, as a non-believer, observe his taboos in the public domain, he is not asking for my respect but for my submission. And that is incompatible with a secular democracy. Flemming Rose (Dutch journalist) My biggest takeaway from economics is that the past wasn't as good as you remember, the present isn't as bad as you think, and the future will be better than you anticipate. Morgan Housel http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2016/01/14/things-im-pretty-sure-about.aspx
kraychik Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 Generally I don't like the idea of tax credits. Harper uses them to throw a bone to his support base. Not unlike any other party. The broader problem is how powerful the federal government is via the CRA. With virtually no limits on what can be taxed and how, the federal government (under any leadership) has a powerful weapon at its disposal to use for political advantage. Quote
Civis Romanus sum Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 A flat tax is not necessary to simplify the system. The system could be made way simpler by making capital gains taxes the equivalent as interest/wage income and eliminating most tax credits while lowering the tax rates to offset some of these changes. But most people do not have capital gains so would pay no taxes. And how would this make anything simpler with respect to the varying tax brackets? What could be simpler than a flat tax along with a VAT? Quote
Evening Star Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 I don't like the way the Conservatives have handled the tax code. It seems totally ridiculous to me, and certainly not 'fiscally conservative'. Quote
msj Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 But most people do not have capital gains so would pay no taxes. And how would this make anything simpler with respect to the varying tax brackets? What could be simpler than a flat tax along with a VAT? It is not hard to apply progressive tax rates - it is simple math. It is all the various rules that deal with what is deductible (eg, section 18 and then look to section 67 with respect to disallowing golf green fees and memberships, for example), then look to sections 85/98 with respect to tax deferred rollovers (and section 55 for butterfly transactions) etc etc. Those are the complicated parts and they will remain complicated even with a flat tax rate. The flat tax rate does little to nothing for simplifying the tax system. Quote If a believer demands that I, as a non-believer, observe his taboos in the public domain, he is not asking for my respect but for my submission. And that is incompatible with a secular democracy. Flemming Rose (Dutch journalist) My biggest takeaway from economics is that the past wasn't as good as you remember, the present isn't as bad as you think, and the future will be better than you anticipate. Morgan Housel http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2016/01/14/things-im-pretty-sure-about.aspx
ReeferMadness Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 Here is the link. and a quote In May, the Canadian Taxpayers Federation tallied the Income Tax Act at 3,314 pages long. Harper’s government has added 739 pages since taking office. It took from 1917 - when Canada first introduced an income tax act - until 2005 to get to the first 2500 pages, but it only took Harper a decade to increase it by a quarter. Just another day of poor governance. Quote Unlimited economic growth has the marvelous quality of stilling discontent while preserving privilege, a fact that has not gone unnoticed among liberal economists. - Noam Chomsky It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends on his not understanding it. - Upton Sinclair
ReeferMadness Posted August 25, 2015 Report Posted August 25, 2015 I think that taxes are too complicated as it is. I would prefer a simple, flat tax along with a VAT. Flat tax. Flat earth. Same level of thinking. Quote Unlimited economic growth has the marvelous quality of stilling discontent while preserving privilege, a fact that has not gone unnoticed among liberal economists. - Noam Chomsky It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends on his not understanding it. - Upton Sinclair
Topaz Posted August 26, 2015 Author Report Posted August 26, 2015 (edited) Sorry about the link, so I went back to the Edmonton Sun and I'll try again, if it doesn't go, just go to the Edmonton SUN and click under "opinion". http://www.edmontonsun.com/2015/08/24/harpers-tax-credits-bad-policy Edited August 26, 2015 by Topaz Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.