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Comment by bruce511 | Hacker News Reader

If not taxes, how do you suggest public infrastructure is funded? That road you drive on for example?

What about public service workers? Teachers, Firemen, Police etc?

What about external costs? If I'm dumping rubbish in the local stream who cleans that up? Who incentivises me to stop doing that?

I agree that unbounded taxes, and unbounded govt are a drag, but I'm genuinely curious as to how you see the alternatives playing out.

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How much tax revenue do we need for roads, fireman, and police?

A shocking amount, and it’s well spent, because it literally underpins everything else. The stability it provides (or rather, provided in the past) is what made America so appealing to build and invest in in the first place.

According to ChatGPT. < 4% of federal budgets goes to these things and about 16% of state budgets.

That was also generous and includes all transportation - not just roads.

So yeah, I’m thinking defending current tax level or tax increases using these examples is not in good faith. You’re picking only The most popular programs (do we like police now?) and ignoring the other 85%.

The largest 3 blocks of the budget are military, social security and Medicare.

Personally I'd happily decimate the military budget. Social security however is very popular. As is Medicare.

Ok, so the current level of taxation is definitely not for the police, fire, and roads which is what you led with.

If you want to convince people taxes are important honestly you need to do it with Medicare. Social security, and military.

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