Re: (OPE-L) Re: taxation and public finance

[Paul Bullock <paulbullock@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Juttiaan,

what are the references to Marx's objectsions etc as you suggested below?

thanks

paul Bl.

----- Original Message -----
From: "Gerald A. Levy" <Gerald_A_Levy@xxxxxxx>
To: <OPE-L@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Sunday, May 23, 2004 12:37 PM
Subject: [OPE-L] (OPE-L) Re: taxation and public finance


> Hi Jurriaan.
>
> > Marx's objection to a a VAT-type tax was that
> > (1) it glossed over differences in social class position and (2)
separated
> > tax collection from the control over the spending of tax funds, i.e.
taxes
> > would be no longer earmarked for a specific purpose, administered by a
> > specific authority and under control of taxpayers who give a specific
> > mandate for expenditure of specific tax funds. The second point is
> > probably more politically significant these days than the first, namely
> > money gets spent for things that taxpayers gave no mandate for, and
> > have no control over.
>
> A couple of international and historical point of information questions:
>
> In what capitalist social formations have citizens had the right to
> directly vote on proposed government expenditures on a line-by-line
> or category-by-category basis?   And, in what capitalist nations
> were taxes only applied for specific purposes that the taxpayers knew
> about and mandated in advance of tax payment? (Note that I'm not
> asking about government bonds or, on the spending side, categorical
> grants).
>
> In solidarity, Jerry
>