Home Contact Sitemap Checkout login

 
 
  French   English
bulletinaylmer.shoutcms.net
  • Home
  • English
    • English
    • News
      • News
      • Page Options
        • Page Options
        • Page With Right Side Navigation
        • Featuring all Browse Options
        • Page With Three Columns
        • Full Width Featuring Typography
        • Full Width Plus Carousel Header
      • Article Options
        • Article Options
        • Article - 1 Column
        • Article -1 Column Large
        • Article - 3 Columns
        • Article - 4 Column
        • Article Category - List
        • Article - 2 Column Full
        • Article - 3 Column Full
        • Article - 4 Column Full
      • Product Categories
        • Product Categories
        • Product - 1 Columns
        • Product - 2 Columns
        • Product - 3 Columns
        • Product - 4 Columns
        • Product - 2 Column Full
        • Product - 3 Column Full
        • Product - 4 Column Full
      • Gallery Options
        • Gallery Options
        • Minimal Gallery
        • Carousel Gallery
        • Thumbnail Gallery
      • National News
      • Business News
    • Opinion
      • Opinion
      • Columns
      • Editorials
      • Letters to the editor
    • Sports
    • Healthy Living
    • Events
    • Classified
    • Best of Aylmer
      • Best of Aylmer
      • 2017 Photo Gallery
      • 2016 Photo Gallery
      • 2015 Photo Gallery
      • 2014 Photo Gallery
      • 2013 Photo Gallery
      • 2012 Photo Gallery
    • Directory
    • Contests
    • About
      • About
      • Administration
      • Production Department
      • Advertising Department
      • Editorial Department
    • Contact
    • Subscriptions
  • Français
    • Français
    • Événements
    • Actualités
      • Actualités
      • Nouvelles nationales
      • Nouvelles Économiques
    • Opinions
      • Opinions
      • Chroniques
      • Éditoriaux
      • Lettres à l'éditeur
    • Sports
    • Vivre en santé
    • Petites annonces
    • Meilleur d'Aylmer
      • Meilleur d'Aylmer
      • Galerie Photo 2017
      • Galerie Photo 2016
      • Galerie Photo 2015
      • Galerie Photo 2014
      • Galerie Photo 2013
      • Galerie Photo 2012
    • Répertoire
    • Concours
    • À propos
      • À propos
      • Administration
      • Département de production
      • Département de publicité
      • Département de rédaction
    • Contact
    • Abonnements
  • News
  • Opinion
    • Columns
    • Editorials
    • Letters to the editor
  • Sports
  • Healthy Living
  • Events
  • Classified
  • Best of Aylmer
  • Directory
  • Contests
  • About
  • Contact
  • Subscriptions
Home/English/Opinion/Editorials Print This Page

EDITORIAL

Not all taxes are created equal


There are taxes and there are taxes, not all created equal. But to cut to the core, let’s separate corporate from individual taxes.  We hear so often that we should “cut taxes”, meaning, usually, cut corporate taxes. We’re warned that unless we cut their taxes, corporations will leave for places where corporate taxes are lower.

That sometimes happens; politicians trot out the example of Google moving to Ireland “to escape high taxes”. But if corporate taxation is so high, why do so many individuals – professionals like doctors and architects, freelancers and the self-employed – why do they incorporate for the tax breaks?

As for individuals, we pay a lot in taxes, when we consider that every single purchase and permit is taxed. But we also recognize that we live and work here and taxes are necessary to keep our town, province, and nation working well. We appreciate paved streets, a health service, a legal system and a military to protect us.

We get a lot in return for our taxes, and a user-pay system would be cumbersome (expensive) to operate (you want to be billed for the kilometres you put on the roads every year? for police patrols in your neighbourhood, or pay for each time your kids use a local park? Imagine the cost just to bill all that!) We do get annoyed when our tax dollars are wasted, however “waste” is defined.

So Canadians don’t terribly mind paying taxes, if they are not squandered and if we get practical value for them.

Corporations are different. They want someone else to pay for the roads, airports, weather stations, schools, and social services which benefit them. They – often – insist they get nothing from social services, yet a reasonably affluent society that functions under law is necessary for their own survival. Taxes pay to maintain their markets, their customers, their employees, their transportation basics, protection from crime, on and on. Corporations often are just handed our national resources.

This is a hypocrisy which most people recognize. Corporations get crucial benefits, provided by taxes, and so they should pay their share, even if they dislike the regulations and monitoring which sometimes come with the benefits. We remember all this, I hope, when we hear politicians hector us about giving more tax breaks to corporations.

But here’s the rub: why do these same complaining corporations turn around and spend even more money on tax-like things, but only those they wish to support or which push only their interests?

A little digging unearths an astoundingly complex world of think-tanks, organizations (many with green-washed names), political parties and politicians, public-opinion campaigns, and political movements -- all supported by corporations. The cost of all this is a form of self-tax, millions of dollars which the CEOs direct themselves.

There are multiple studies of this propaganda network – Dark Money by Jane Mayer (US), and Cloak of Green by Elaine Dewar (Canada) are two, and are absolute wake-up calls.  “Lower corporate taxes” has little to do with taxation.

 

Contact & Subscription
Tél. 819-684-4755 ou / or 1-800-486-7678
Fax. 819-684-6428
Monday to Friday from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm
Unit C10, 181 Principale, Secteur Aylmer, Gatineau, Quebec, J9H 6A6

Advertise with us
819-684-4755
ventes.sales@bulletinaylmer.com

French
Actualités
Opinion
Sports
Événements
Petites annonces
Vivre en santé

English
News
Opinion
Sports
Events
Classifieds
Healthy Living

Copyright (C)

  Terms of Use    Privacy Policy   
Built on ShoutCMS   

We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Periodical Fund of the Department of Canadian Heritage.