Where are the customers who PAY TAXES FOR ADMISSION?
Answer:
RL that's who! At least it may be if he can afford to get in anymore.
Let's see an extra $5 to get in, maybe a lap dance tax too? Maybe a tax on any food and beer too?
Seriously though, since the people proposing this don't pay it, they would be happy to add all these taxes later. It's always put the tax on the other guy.
RL that's who! At least it may be if he can afford to get in anymore.
Let's see an extra $5 to get in, maybe a lap dance tax too? Maybe a tax on any food and beer too?
Seriously though, since the people proposing this don't pay it, they would be happy to add all these taxes later. It's always put the tax on the other guy.
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Let's tax all our sinners
By RICK CASEY
Copyright 2004 Houston Chronicle
The Legislature needs help with the very difficult task of paying for our public schools. Everyone agrees that good public schools are important. Almost everybody agrees that poor kids deserve as much public funding as rich kids.
Almost everybody agrees that our state's reliance on property tax has grown too heavy. That's where agreement ends. Some politicians want to rely more on sin taxes. Led by the governor, they would tax cigarettes and strip joints and increase state-sponsored gambling by installing video lotteries at race tracks. Some, led by the lieutenant governor, want to increase revenues by broadening the tax base.
I think I have the solution. We should broaden the base of sins we tax. We need a serious discussion of how best to do this, and I'm calling on ministers of every faith to bring their expertise to the table. My purpose here is simply to start the discussion.
With the Seven Deadly Sins.
Governor Perry's proposal already covers two.
··Avarice. This is "too great a desire for wealth." Playing the lottery, either by video at racetracks or by buying tickets at the convenience store, is an effective way to tax avarice. Mathematicians will tell you that, statistically speaking, the odds of winning the lottery are the same if you don't buy a ticket as they are if you do. So there is no rational reason to play except for indulging in avarice's equivalent of a pornographic fantasy. That brings us to...
··Lust. I like Perry's proposal to add a $5 tax on admission to strip joints. Since most of these refer to themselves as "gentlemen's clubs," they should be fined for false advertising as well. Given what patrons pay for cheap drinks for themselves and "champagne" (aka ginger ale) for the dancers, they won't hesitate to pay five bucks for education.
··Wrath. How to tax this sin? Easy: Place a levy on talk radio based on Arbitron ratings. Right-wing talk radio. Left-wing talk radio. Talk radio feeds on the angry belief that those who disagree with you are either stupid or, worse, evil. When well done, the frothing is entertaining. Wrathful entertainment can be taxed, just like lustful entertainment. Let's keep the tax low: a penny per average listener per day.
··Gluttony. Fast-food nation makes this a snap. Can you say, "Super-size it"? That'll be 50 cents. McDonald's isn't the only restaurant that super-sizes, though. The luxury equivalents are steak houses such as Morton's of Chicago, where steaks the size of footballs are accompanied by baked potatoes big as hat boxes. Tax those plates $5. This brings us to another tax on potatoes: couch potatoes...
··Sloth. This is the best proposal of all, because it is doubly beneficial. It not only would raise money for schools but would inherently produce better students. A $1 tax on cigarettes, as proposed by the governor, would likely have the benefit of reducing smoking, especially among the young. It would be better if the money went to health care, the costs of which would be reduced if the tax had its beneficial effect. My sloth tax for schools would do for education what the cigarette tax would do for health. The tax? All televisions would be monitored and taxed a nickel for every minute they are on. There may be no single educational reform with more impact than reducing the amount of time children spend watching television. Parents, too.
Much to the chagrin of governments throughout the ages, not everything can be taxed, not even all sins.
I have pondered and pondered, but haven't been able to figure a way to tax the two remaining deadly sins: pride and envy.
But then, I'm not a preacher or a politician. I know we can count on them.
Some states have a similar sin tax. Last year Vegas projected and additional $111 million from theirs.