John Locke's, Human Nature Theory states that all men are inherently created equal, this was the basis that the United States was founded on. In order to uphold this notion, it is pertinent that the rich along with large corporations pay taxes, in order to afford every man, woman, and child, the same opportunities in this country. Abolishing tax loopholes will result in the great equalizer for this nation, resulting in narrowing the gap of the United State’s classes.
In light of the current pandemic that has hit the world, the current American economy has only been exacerbated and contorted to benefit the wealthy, which has resulted in the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer. On average, the top 1% own more or less around 32% of the nation's wealth (Nutting). Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates, Larry Ellison and Warren Buffett are five main examples of individuals, from the top 1% whose net worth has only grown since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. These five men who already have obtained a great deal of wealth, have added $76 billion combined, since the start of the pandemic (Frank). With the amount of money that these people have made, it is almost common knowledge that they pay very little taxes. With Amazon as a company paying $0 in taxes for 2018 after receiving a $129 million tax rebate (Huddleston). Amazon, which Bezos owns, scammed the government out of vast amounts of money that would have been put towards essential health care programs, climate change funding, Food Stamps programs ect. (Davis). If this event reflects only one year and one company, how many other people and companies have deceived the American people, it is only hard to imagine what other big corporations and wealthy individuals have not paid. It seems to have become easier and easier for the rich and wealthy, along with big corporations to avoid paying taxes all together.
As the gap is only becoming larger, and the top 1% accumulates more and more of the Nation's wealth, the economy is riding off the backs of hard working middle class Americans. The middle class has carried the economic burden for too long, it is no secret that the middle class, along with the lower class, spends a greater part of their salary than the rich do. If tax loopholes are closed, the government would not have to tax the middle and lower classes as high, this will allow the middle class, and lower class, to spend more of their money, which will result in the recycling of money. With a greater amount of money disposable to the middle and lower classes, and the widely known notion that the economy thrives off of the overspending of the middle class, it is easy to predict that this will kick start the economy, resulting in, the further perpetuation of the economy (Nutting).
While the rich sit up in their mansions making thousands by the second, our poorest Americans are struggling to make ends meet, sitting on the side of the road, begging for change, or looking through trash for food. Hard working Americans have never stopped working, many lower-socioeconomic status Americans are working two to three jobs, just for basic necessities to continue to skyrocket in price ( Nutting). A confirmed taxation of the rich, will allow the government to put more money into essential healthcare programs, such as Medicare, Medicaid, social security, schools, food stamps ect. Confirmed taxation will allow for the government to raise the national minimum wage from $7 to $15. This increase in the minimum wage can be the difference from working two to three jobs, to working only one to two jobs. Confirmed taxation can help fund free higher education. An educated population has proven to shrink mortality rates, crime rates, and will allow these individuals that are a part of lower socioeconomic status neighborhoods, to rise up, and not “leach” off of society (Azarnert). The money provided from the confirmed taxation of the rich and big corporations, will allow a more equal distribution of opportunities to middle and lower class Americans (Nutting).
As the economic tides continue to ride up and down many are reluctant to the idea of closing tax loopholes. Many arguments lie in the fact that those who want higher taxes/ a confirmed taxation of the rich, and large corporations are considered too ambitious, counter productive, and plainly told that it can’t happen (Dowd). Solving the inequalities in our society shouldn’t be seen as too ambitious, or counter productive. It is irrational to think that all of this could happen over night or even within ten years, yes, but everything takes time and can be worked at. In order to uphold the ideal that all men are created equal, which is a fundamental thought that this nation was built upon, we must work at providing equal opportunity for everyone, if we don't, how are we equal? Whether that is the equal opportunity to pay a fair share of taxes, the equal opportunity to receive an education, the equal opportunity to live, which is provided through entitlement programs, or providing the equal opportunity to for humanity to continue, through the funding of climate change research (Nutting). As of right now in order for these programs to receive funding we must make them a priority and close tax loopholes. There is a problem in this country when even the current president of the united states pays less taxes ($750, in 2016) than the average american (Buettner).
In order to ensure that companies pay up it is pertinent that our legislature closes tax loopholes, like the ones that Amazon and president Donald Trump Jr. have religiously taken advantage of (Huddleston). We rely everyday on the government to protect our rights and ensure the notion that all men are created equal. In order for this ideal to truly exist in society their needs to be a confirmed taxation of the rich and large corporations. Until tax loopholes are closed the rich and wealthy will continue to disrupt the equality of all Americans.
Work Cited
Azarnert, L.V. Free education, fertility and human capital accumulation. J Popul Econ 23, 449–468 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00148-008-0205-8
Buettner, Russ, et al. Trump's Taxes Show Chronic Losses and Years of Income Tax Avoidance. 27 Sept. 2020, www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/09/27/us/donald-trump-taxes.html.
Davis, Andrew. “Why Amazon Paid No 2018 US Federal Income Tax.” CNBC, CNBC, 4 Apr. 2019, www.cnbc.com/2019/04/03/why-amazon-paid-no-federal-income-tax.html.
Dowd, Kevin. The Deficit Myth: Modern Monetary Theory and the Birth of the People's Economy. 14 Sept. 2020, www.cato.org/cato-journal/fall-2020/deficit-myth-modern-monetary-theory-birth-peoples-economy.
Frank, Robert. “American Billionaires Got $434 Billion Richer during the Pandemic.” CNBC, CNBC, 21 May 2020, www.cnbc.com/2020/05/21/american-billionaires-got-434-billion-richer-during-the-pandemic.html.
Huddleston, Tom Huddleston. “Amazon Will Pay $0 in Federal Taxes This Year - and It's Partially Thanks to Trump.” CNBC, CNBC, 21 Feb. 2019, www.cnbc.com/2019/02/15/amazon-will-pay-0-in-federal-taxes-this-year.html.
Nutting, Rex. “Why Raising Taxes on the Rich Isn't so Crazy.” MarketWatch, MarketWatch, 14 Dec. 2019, www.marketwatch.com/story/why-raising-taxes-on-the-rich-isnt-so-crazy-2019-12-09.