I, for one, would love tariffs instead of income taxes. Consumption taxes are generally way more fair.
Discussion
Simple Question - You want people to consume more or produce more !
Tariffs make soooo much more sense than income tax. We have more money to buy stuff, so either we support more businesses or we import more stuff, which means more money for government. Probably both.
Never change an evil for a lesser evil. You'll end up with both and worse
Tariffs are better than the income tax, but still have major problems. If we are going to fund the government through taxes, we should replace 100% of taxes, at all levels of government, with sales taxes. Then require the amount of taxes taken by each government be printed on each receipt so people see, with every purchase, how much the government is truly stealing from them. If you want to help the poor, you could exempt unprocessed foods, rent (& home purchases), and/or electric power. Any time someone produces their own stuff, they can avoid paying taxes. Trading, instead of buying new, could also avoid taxation. No individual would have to deal with audits or government spying or intervention. A ton of government bureaucrats could be eliminated because we don't need to pay for paper pushers to nickel and dime the public.
I don't like any taxes, but a sales tax is the fairest tax. The income tax, property tax, and death tax are the most evil.
tariffs are a retarded government interference in the free market
it only ends up damaging producers and their markets and makes determining the real cost of goods more difficult.
as are income taxes
Consumption taxes are the better ones. Tariffs generate distortions in the market and have side effects that harm consumers in the long run. For example, by protecting certain industries they can make them inefficient, less competitive and less innovative; as a result, the consumer receives a product with an unfavorable price-quality ratio compared to a free market situation.
Same could be said about union labor.
The problem with tarrifs is deploying them equally across industries. It's definitely anti-free market behavior, but of course so is the income tax.
If we could find some way of negating favoritism and cronyism when applying them I'd agree with you.
Definitely agree with consumption taxes being way more fair than income tax. They encourage saving over out-of-control consumerism
Poll tax.