How did we run the nation before all this tax ?

Question

Income tax - brought in to pay for World war one - a temporary and voluntary measure - More or less the same story in the US but of course a little different

GST a neutral tax that would generate no new income for the government (bullion dollar surplus because of the GST)


Etc etc

How on earth did we run this nation before all these taxes

Gas tax - more than 35% of the price you pay is tax at that pump the oil company is small fries compared to the government - They sure didn't have that in 1910

How did governments survive ?

Answer 1

I wasn't alive back then.


State tax pays for welfare, roads, schools, etc. etc.

Federal pays for federal education grants, *war*, aid to other nations, and salaries of politicians (vacations and the best retirement plans imaginable too), and more.

No amout of government spending compares in the slightest to that of the billions spent on war. People complain about welfare but it's just a tiny percentage of the budget! I can back it up if you want a link let me know.

State Lotteries used to help fund schools, but that stopped, creating a higher local tax for neighborhood schools.

Answer 2

you're suited that we want some financial restraint. there's a hidden tax in our gadget that few human beings see. this is the national Debt. not the pastime on it, the Debt itself. the quantity of obtainable Capital interior the international is finite. this is huge, in spite of the shown fact that it particularly is a limited source. once you borrow to purchase a house, a automobile, or boost a company, you're utilising a number of that Capital. The pastime you pay is the "hire" on what you employ. If one entity absorbs an significant quantity of that obtainable Capital, such via fact the ten Trillion dollar national Debt, what occurs to the fee to hire a bite of what's final? undemanding Economics assist you appreciate that it is going up. In different words, your place loan expenses you better than it would if there have been no national Debt. in the experience that your man or woman loan is $a hundred and twenty,000, and the further fee is only a million%, it particularly is a hidden Tax of $a hundred.00 in keeping with month. Peter Schiff does understand this. i don't understand if anybody else in Washington does or not, however the question is, whether they did realize it, why might they care via fact which you do not realize it?

Answer 3

There are several differences between then and now that you need to consider before you make a comparison, for instance:

Prior to WWI, there was only a very small standing army--and they were not well equipped. It was assumed that any mobilization of a military by another nation would be noticed before it would be a viable threat. This assumption no longer holds, though it could, if the US would be willing to relinquish "superpower" status (we aren't).

Tariffs on imported goods were common, and rather high.

The government did not sponsor science programs (e.g. NASA).

There was no EPA or environmental legislation (or enforcement) and so no budget for those things.

The government did not regulate businesses very much (see trust-busting, etc.), and so did not devote resources to it.

There was no Federal law-enforcement (FBI) prior to Teddy Roosevelt.

The CIA was founded after WWII.

The Cold War saw unprecedented spending on the creation (and maintainence) of strategic weapons (read WMD's).

There was no medicare, medicaid,or government-sponsored welfare programs.

And so on.

Answer 4

Import tariffs. It was one of the biggest reasons for the War for Southern Independence. Since most imports came through southern ports (cotton was traded for British manufactured goods then resold), and independent south would have meant little money for the USA to spend on northern infrastructure improvements (railroads, canals, roads, telegraphs, etc) and thus prompting Lincoln's famous remark, "What about my money?". The states had quite a few taxes for people to pay (on property, etc) but since the Federal government used to be limited in size by the Constitution, it really didn't need a lot of money until the USA started to become a world power.

Answer 5

We spend far less money.

Prior to the last century, the govt expenditures where much smaller compared to the overall income of the nation.

As the federal and state govts grew larger and more cumbersome, and added social and political programs galore, the cost of all that govt activity kept adding up. So, the govt needed to find a way to take in more money to pay for it all.

Hence, more taxes. You don't want taxes -- reduce what the govt pays for. Look at New Hampshire. No state sales tax. No state income tax. Property taxes pay for the roads, schools and emergency services (police, fire, etc.) Other than that, you're on your own -- no taxes, no social welfare programs.

Answer 6

There have always been taxes. The US graduated income tax is actually quite a good idea. One problem with taxes is that in 1917 the average american business paid about 17% of its profit in taxes. Today that has fallen to 3%, with many of the Fortune 500 paying no federal taxes at all (especially when federal subsidies are subtracted). In addition, much of the income of america's wealthiest individuals is cleverly exempt from income taxes as these are paid out as stock options. When these are inherited, federal taxes can be avoided altogether under the elimination of the inheritance tax.

Answer 7

Actually, Lincoln had a 7% tax to pay for the Civil War.
The only Federal Tax was supposed to pay for the Defense of our country.
We kind of let the tax system run amok huh?
FDR had marginal Tax Rates as high as 93% at one point.
Herbert Hoover Raised mrginal rates to 68% before the Great Depression.

Answer 8

For one thing, we didn't have agencies telling us how to live. Like wearing seat belts, car seats for kids, mandatory insurance on everything, and now want to impose mandatory health insurance on us even tho that won't work.
Decades ago, we did not require fishing licenses, safety helmets for bicycles, or other government infringements on our rights. And government officials who were elected didn't need all these aides they now have. And assistants and assistant assistants. They could eliminate at least 50% of our taxes by cutting their pay to reasonable wages, which would be the average citizen income. And eliminate their perks. And eliminate stupid agencies such as the ACLU, OSHA, and PACs.
And by all means, congress and the Senate should not be permitted to vte their own pay raises. We as voters are their bosses, and we should have a say in that.

Answer 9

Because we didn't have to pay for Social Security, Medicare, Medicade, Welfare, and (probably some day) socialized medicine. Back then, they also didn't have to build and maintain the entire national highway system.

All of the things I mentioned cost lots of money, money that they didn't need before they existed. If you want to cut costs, you have to cut benefits. Personally, I would be more than willing to live without a few (like Social Security) to put a little of my own money back in my pocket.

Answer 10

Mostly with a smaller Federal government and the use of Tariffs on imports