National sales tax? Yes. In addition to income tax? SCREW THAT!

At long last, some in Washington are saying that it's time to have a national sales tax, which is something that I've been advocating for years.

The problem is that these same people want the sales tax in addition to the pre-existing income tax.

Common around the world, including in Europe, such a tax -- called a value-added tax, or VAT -- has not been seriously considered in the United States. But advocates say few other options can generate the kind of money the nation will need to avert fiscal calamity.

At a White House conference earlier this year on the government's budget problems, a roomful of tax experts pleaded with Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner to consider a VAT. A recent flurry of books and papers on the subject is attracting genuine, if furtive, interest in Congress. And last month, after wrestling with the White House over the massive deficits projected under Obama's policies, the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee declared that a VAT should be part of the debate.

"There is a growing awareness of the need for fundamental tax reform," Sen. Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) said in an interview. "I think a VAT and a high-end income tax have got to be on the table."

This is fiscal insanity without any clarity of vision.

Here's what should be done: scrap the income tax completely. Doing so would boost the economy in ways that hardly anybody can possibly imagine. It would free up a massive portion of the individual and small business sectors to re-engage in private enterprise. Then have a national sales tax, which is equitable across the board and with no regard to "income brackets". And for good measure, slash corporate tax rates so that more American businesses will be enticed to bring their industries back to the United States.

If those things are done, there will be a domestic financial renaissance the likes of which has not been seen in recent memory.

But to pile new taxes upon those which are already too burdensome for most Americans is to invite inevitable disaster.

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Lest anyone believe this blog will be soft on Obama...

Ever since this blog began five years ago, I have very often broken bad on George W. Bush. Because he has consistently proven himself to have been the worst President of the modern era (and quite possibly the worst ever). There have been a few times when I have not hesitated to praise his actions, but those have been few and far between. It will be decades before the damage that he has done to America can be fully repaired, if at all.

But don't think that The Knight Shift is going to be a safe harbor for pro-Obama sentiment either...

This blog and the admittedly off-kilter guy behind it do not cotton to any ideology. If anyone enters my dojo with the sad notion that I should admire or fear them because they are a self-styled "conservative" or "liberal", then they are wrong... and I won't hesitate to land them square on their ass for their assumed bravura. People can have conservative or liberal opinions about a given issue, but to deride others as blanket "conservative" or "liberal" is to not give those people the respect that they deserve and to give such a label to one's entire identity is the acme of shallowness.

So Bush is finally going away, and it can't come a moment too soon. How much confidence do I have with incoming Barack Obama? If this next story is any indication: not much at all.

According to a video that Obama had posted on YouTube, as part of "economic stimulus" he wants to create three million new jobs, with 80% of those being in the private sector.

But that translates into 600,000 jobs that will be in government. In other words: more bureaucrats. What these new employees on the federal dole will be doing that government employees are not already busy with, I haven't a clue. And I would be remiss if I did not mention that no nation in history ever created prosperity for itself by increasing the size and scope of its own government. The George W. Bush years alone proved that.

What I'd love to know even more though, is how exactly does Obama believe he can create 2,400,000 employed positions in the private labor force? The most robust way that I can recall that ever being possibly done, is for there to be wartime conditions like World War II, when vast segments of the population went to work for defense contractors.

There is only one way that Barack Obama can help create economic growth and recovery for America's finances: cut taxes - especially slashing income taxes and corporate taxes so as to encourage more domestic industry - and cut spending. Not just one and not just the other, but both together.

If Barack Obama does that, he will truly go down in history as one of the greatest American Presidents of all time.

We'll see what happens, over the next four years or eight...

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California may use IOUs for tax rebates

Cash-strapped California - which in my opinion has already collapsed financially and at this point is merely putting lipstick on a pig - is seriously considering issuing IOUs for rebates to taxpayers.

Maybe the good people of California should consider reciprocating the favor by paying their taxes in IOUs.

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Oregon governor wants to use satellites to impose mileage tax

To quote that bard of our age Will Smith: "AWWW HELL NAWWWW!!!"

The state of Oregon has a problem, according to its governor Ted Kulongoski. In his words, "As Oregonians drive less and demand more fuel-efficient vehicles, it is increasingly important that the state find a new way, other than the gas tax, to finance our transportation system."

So Governor Kulongoski wants to use Global Positioning System technology to impose a "mileage tax" that will "replace" the gas tax.

If his mad plan proceeds and you are an Oregon citizen, every time you take off in your car its movements will be monitored by your state government, and a tax will be imposed for each mile that you drive.

I'm gonna say it, my Worst Possible Epithet for Anything: This sucks donkey's balls to no end.

If Kulongoski gets away with this, it'll only be persisting the pattern that has gone on far too long in this country: government at every level thirsting for money and power, and abusing it when it gets it. Does anyone seriously believe this is going to supplant the gas tax in Oregon? Within a year of it being imposed, the state will decree that "not enough taxes" are being collected and the gas tax will be reinforced on top of the mileage tax.

Not to mention that this is an extreme violation of the Constitution, and the people's right to free movement.

Folks, and I'm not just talking about y'all in Oregon, please listen to me here: too much of the government of this country is out of control. The past few months alone should have indicated that much regardless of how obtuse an observer might be. The "bailouts" should never have happened, and we're getting taxed to the breaking point. At the rate this is happening, can it really be said that our children and their children will know of a free America as we once appreciated?

So the question becomes: what are we going to do about it?

If you are in Oregon, I hope and pray that you will pull out all the stops and resist this insane scheme by your governor.

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New York State budget: craziest taxes ever?

Governor David Paterson has revealed his $121 billion budget plan for New York State and it includes proposals that actually trump California's "snack tax" of the early Nineties in terms of utter lunacy. There are 88 suggested new taxes and fees, including for digital downloads of songs for iPod and other music devices, beer, soft drinks, cable and satellite television services, movie tickets, and massages (?!?).

This reminds me of 1993, when then-President Clinton was trying to pass a retroactive tax increase (which passed in Congress). I called my Representative in the U.S. House, who at the time was Steve Neal. Never got through to him personally (but then since when does a citizen ever get through to his or her Rep?) but I asked his staff numerous times: "When was the last time that a government taxed itself to prosperity?" They couldn't give an answer. Neither is Governor Paterson going to be able to provide one to the citizens of New York. If anything, these taxes are going to drive away people and businesses, making a dire situation for New York that much worse.

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Walter E. Williams asks: Are Americans slaves?

I've always appreciated Dr. Walter E. Williams's perspective and candor. There have been times when I didn't necessarily agree with him, but whenever he writes or speaks it's apparent that it only comes after investing considerable thought into the matter. For that reason alone, I would recommend Dr. Williams as someone far above and removed from the rest of the "talking heads" out there.

Over at Townhall.com Williams has posed the question: "Are Americans pro-slavery?". It's a fairly short but rich piece that should have everyone reading it question whether they are really free or not.

Personally, I don't believe that the state of condition in America fosters anything but captivity to the current system. That we aren't "owned" in terms of there existing a title deed with one's name on it doesn't change the fact that most of the product of our own labor does go to bigger government. And can it be said that we are becoming "more free" at all, in this day of increasing taxes and mandates on the citizenry?

Yeah, we're slaves all right, just like Williams describes in his piece. Now the question is: What are we going to do about it?

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Obama's disastrous fuel tax proposal

Barack Obama is suggesting a $15 billion tax on the profits of oil companies. That would allegedly be used to provide $1000 of tax relief for families and other "assistance".

This is a worse idea than George W. Bush's "stimulus" package... and that's already the most irresponsible and foolish bit of enacted legislation that I've seen in Lord knows how long.

Does Obama believe that his proposal is going to slash the cost of fuel, which is soaring well past the ability of most people to easily afford? If anything it's going to make those costs increase even more dramatically. The oil companies will simply pass along the expense to their customers.

Obama's only motivation in forwarding this idea is that he wants to tap into the seething rage that many people are now feeling toward the oil companies, which are enjoying record profits. It's just a gimmick he's pushing to further his chances at getting elected President. But I wonder how many of the people he's aiming this proposal toward would understand that much of that extra "profit" is only because of this government's reckless financial policies, which have resulted in an over-inflated dollar. I'm inclined to believe that there is very little here that could seriously be attributed to "greed" on the part of the companies, for which they must be "punished".

But if Obama were to see this policy enacted, it would be the consumers and not the oil companies that would suffer.

I've already written here about the diminishing value of the dollar. In addition to shoring-up our currency, a wise energy and economic policy should entail...

1. Dramatically reducing fuel taxes

2. Not just allowing but also actively encouraging domestic petroleum production

3. Building more refineries, especially those that can readily process "sour" (sulfur-rich) crude

4. Offering financial incentives to corporations to actively research new potential sources of petroleum, such as the promising work regarding oil shale and bacterial-produced synthetic crude

5. Recognizing that for the foreseeable future, that ethanol and other so-called "biofuels" are not commercially viable and in fact have a deleterious impact on available food supply

Those are some of the bigger things we could be doing to improve both our economy and our fuel resources. But they require some long-term vision and commitment. Not knee-jerk emotionalism and election year duplicity.

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It's 5:18 p.m. EST on April 15th ...

Have you finished your annual tribute to the Almighty Government yet, fellow serf?

The income tax is at once the most evil and the most accepted form of slavery of modern times. Has anyone ever stopped to think about how much free time that the federal government demands of us, that could otherwise be used productively, as we the people see fit?

Instead we try to earn more to get things that we don't really need, and to pay more and more taxes to a government that can't cut its own wasteful spending.

Why the Hell should my money go to subsidize an illegal alien's welfare, or that of some unwed kid who gets pregnant multiple times without bothering to find a job to support them on her own? I'm trying to make my own destiny, dammit... and not I or anyone else can be free to do that with these damned leeches sucking off the sweat of our own labor.

America will not be a prosperous country again until we have eliminated the income tax, utterly destroyed the Internal Revenue Service, and reign-in our wasteful expenditures. That, and finally free individuals to live the lives they want to live, without expecting that they somehow "owe" this government for the right to pursue their own happiness.

That's partly why I'm not voting for any of the "front runners" for President. Because none of them possess the wisdom to understand any of this.

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So... what are YOU going to do with your free $600 from the federal government?

The $600 per individual and $1200 per couple that President Bush and Congress are going to give everyone in the country so that we'll forget how much they've FUBAR-ed our economy.

I know what I'm going to do with mine...

I'm going to buy a gun. And ammo. Lots and lots of ammo.

The way things are going lately, that's probably going to become a very wise investment in the short term.

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Excellent piece about Ron Paul in The Red and Black

Something I haven't let y'all in on nearly as much as I should have: I am a die-hard Bulldogs fan. When the girl of your dreams is a grad student at the University of Georgia - the school whose motto should be "Play Football or Die" - you tend to get caught up in the spirit of the place very quickly as you start making regular visits to Athens.

Seriously though: it's a great university. Even though I'll always be proud of my alma mater Elon, you can often find me wearing a Georgia Bulldogs t-shirt whenever I'm out. So I was especially glad to find that this very good article about presidential candidate Ron Paul was written by J. Patrick Rhamey for The Red and Black, the student newspaper at UGA ...

What are our traditional values? Looking across history, they are most certainly not wire-tapping, secret prisons, and preemptive wars. The Republican Party gained power with Newt Gingrich to minimize the size of government, lower taxes, encourage free trade, and get government out of our lives.

Unfortunately, they did the opposite and have paid the price.

It is time to elect someone who represents the political views of Ronald Reagan, Barry Goldwater and Dwight Eisenhower. A patriot who will not put our brave fighting men and women needlessly into harm's way. A candidate who supports policies of economic growth for the middle class such as lower taxes and minimizing government. A man of outstanding character who has been married to the same woman for fifty years and opposes abortion. A veteran who will secure our borders. This is the type of Reagan Republican we need back in the White House.

I encourage Georgians of all parties to take a moment to investigate Paul as a candidate on his website, www.ronpaul2008.com. In this great struggle against terror, amidst the many successes and setbacks, I fear we may be losing sight of that which our fighting men and women are dying to protect: individual freedom. If we lose sight of that, the terrorists have most surely accomplished their goals.

We must elect a candidate who will pursue a humble, defensive foreign policy. One who will bring our fighting men and women home to protect us here, not in Iraq, Afghanistan or Iran.

To quote another great Republican president, Dwight Eisenhower, "Preventive war was an invention of Hitler. Frankly, I would not even listen to anyone seriously that came and talked about such a thing."

As the only Republican candidate who took that advice seriously and opposed the war in Iraq, let's give Ron Paul a chance.

I've been thinking for awhile: even though I'm no longer a believer in political parties, I cannot help but think that if the Republican party does not steer toward the direction that Ron Paul represents, it will no longer be able to claim to be a party of principle after this next presidential election. Unfortunately I'm seeing most, if not all, of the party leadership putting their support behind the usual "contenders" of shallow character.

It's like this: the Republicans must decide that they either want reality, or illusion. It's time for them to take the proverbial red pill and put their money where their mouth is.

And if most people in the GOP seriously believe that Fred Thompson is going to be anything better than George W. Bush, then that party can kiss whatever respect they still have goodbye. It's almost gone anyway, after the fiasco of our border situation.

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