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A Fine Mess

a Global Quest for a Simpler, Fairer, and More Efficient Tax System
Nov 01, 2017PimaLib_NormS rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Be forewarned – reading T.R. Reid’s, “A Fine Mess: A Global Quest for a Simpler, Fairer, and More Efficient Tax System” might cause anger, frustration, and high blood pressure. I think most of us would agree that the tax system in America is completely messed up. And there is no consensus as to exactly what should be done about it. Certainly there is not enough intestinal fortitude amongst our elected leaders to do the difficult work that needs to be done. So here we are, stuck with an unfair, complex, incomprehensible mish-mash of regulations, forms, rates, loopholes, deductions, and credits. Congress may nibble around the edges of it, they may even jam some changes through and call it tax reform, but to hope that they will tackle this vital issue in an honest, open, bipartisan way, for the good of all Americans, not just the one-percenters and the special interests, well, let’s just say that seems rather unlikely. T.R. Reid took on the challenge of writing a book about a dense, complicated subject and actually made it reasonably understandable. He researched tax systems around the world, to see what works and what doesn’t, and tried to determine if ideas that work in, say, New Zealand, could work in America. In “A Fine Mess”, he presents some conclusions and suggestions that might be worthy of consideration, if only our political leaders had the will to act.