To the editor:
In his column, “The road not taken in national policy,” in the April 19 edition, Mr. Charles Krause asserts that “Our taxes are among the highest in the world.” This is false. The Pew Research Center, using OECD data, studied taxes that would be paid by four typical middle-income families in 39 countries. The results of the study showed that U.S. taxes ranged from 22nd to 34th highest. In the U.S., taxation amounts to 25 percent of gross domestic product, fourth-lowest among 30 industrialized nations, according to Politifact.
Mr. Krause extols the positive results of tax reductions enacted in 1922, 1962, and 1981. It is worth noting that the highest marginal tax rates after these reductions, were 50 percent, 77 percent, and 50 percent, respectively; for 2016, the highest marginal tax rate is 39.6 percent.
Mr. Krause bemoans excessive regulation of business. Experience has shown that where there is no regulation or regulation is ineffective, some businesses will take advantage of both the public and competitors.
Businesses polluting the common air or water is not unusual. Before “Obamacare,” some health-insurance companies canceled policies of people who got sick; this is no longer permitted. Putting profits ahead of worker safety resulted in the deaths of 29 coal miners at the Upper Big Branch Mine. In this case, enforcement of more stringent regulations might have saved lives. The CEO of Massey Energy considered government fines an acceptable part of the cost of doing business.
Mr. Krause states that the dollar has lost 98 percent of its value over the last century. The questions are: “Compared to what?” and “Who cares?” Some countries purposely devalue their currency to gain a trade advantage.
Would Mr. Krause like to return to the standard of living of 100 years ago? There are some things that are more important than corporate profits.
David McKenzie
Bennington