Ihave given up.
Let’sface it. As much as I, and I am sure amajority of Americans, would like to see true tax reform and true simplificationcome to pass, it ain’t going to happen in my lifetime.
Theremay be some token reform in 2013, more likely if the Republicans are victoriousnext month (although that may result in more problems in other areas), butnothing of any real substance.
Thelately much referred to Simpson-Bowles Report suggested that we completelyshred the current mucking fess that is the Tax Code and start from scratch,with “everything is taxable and nothing is deductible”, and add back only thosevery few “tax expenditures” (deductions, credits, exclusions) that areabsolutely necessary and appropriate. This is what should be done. Butthis will not be done.
Whatwill probably happen is that at least the majority of the “Bush” tax cuts, and manyof the pesky “extenders”, will be made permanent, or “semi-permanent”. There will be some tweaks depending on who iselected and who has control of Congress. But the Tax Code will continue to be a convoluted mess and more likelythan not get more complicated instead of less.
Whyis this?
(1) The members of Congress areidiots. More so now than ever before inour history. I do believe it began whenhypocrite Newt Gingrich, whom we have hopefully seen and heard the last of, wasin power. And I doubt the election willsubstantially change this.
They have proven time and again thattheir main concern is certainly not the proper administration of thegovernment, but getting themselves re-elected and more members of theirindividual party elected. They willcontinue to be totally partisan, quoting verbatim from the party “script”instead of thinking independently and accepting that compromise is the only wayto get anything done.
(2) I think it was fellow blogger KayBell who said something to the effect that the idiots in Congress are all forclosing tax loopholes except for the ones that they have written. The idiots in Congress will continue topander to special interest groups who fill their pockets and their individualand party campaign chests.
(3) And I think it was also Kay whosuggested that, while most, if not all, taxpayers also want to simplify the TaxCode and close loopholes, they do not want to give up any tax expenditures thatbenefit them individually – even if in the process of simplifying the Code manyof these benefits are continued more responsibly elsewhere within thegovernment.
“We should close the loopholes forhim and her and them. But, wait, thatdeduction or credit I claim is not a loophole, but an entitlement. You can’t take that away!”
Just like the idiots in Congress theAmerican people are basically short-sighted.
So I guess I will just have to grinand bear it. Like blogger Monica Lawversaid when she similarly gave up in her post "Youthful Optimism" last month –
“Themonster of a tax code (Obama's words, not mine) is not going to get simple anytime soon. And I can't change that. So where am I focusing my efforts now? Onhelping clients navigate the system as it is, mess that it is.”
It was a nice dream, though.
TTFN
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