Greenspan: A value-added tax (VAT) may be in the U.S.'s future

Oh...let's listen to this senile bastion of incompetance....that played a major role in this Recession....better yet...someone drop him him off at the nearest Euthanasia Center.

"someone drop him him off at the nearest Euthanasia Center."

Oh, you mean the "ObamaCare Wellness Center"

Don't you think that statement about looking outside the US to do business is a bit of a McGuffin? I maintain that business wants IN not OUT of America. Why? We continue to be, for the time being, the world's largest economy and everybody wants a share of that pie. If it isn't VAT then business would crying something else: cap and trade emissions, mandatory employee health care, EPA regulations, OSHA, high state taxes,lack of incentives, etc. Business will NEVER be satisfied no matter what "breaks", IE, stimulus dollars) they receive. Business takes its labor offshore and hires non-union labor at home base to save bucks but they come back to American shores to sell their products and thereby profit accordingly. Bring on the VAT, I say.

How about this for a solution

Require 99% of everything sold in the US to be manufactured in the US

This would leave enough margin to continue to import Ferrari's, Porsches, assorted French wines and cheeses, and other nation specific unique products

As for all the crap being made in Asia we can easily manufacture it just as poorly here in the states

While we're at it lets put a 10 year freeze on immigration and refugee integration while we get the x# of millions of illegals sorted out

How about making English the official language as well - Billions could be saved by not having all this multi lingual signage and labelling

Protectionism ? You Better believe it, Globalization has put as where we are today

Every country MUST be Agriculturaly, Industrially and Financially independant to avoid crisis like the one we are currently experiencing

Remeber the old slogan -Think globally ACT LOCALLY

OMG - WHY WOULD ANYONE LISTEN TO THIS OLD HACK - HE IS PART OF THE PROBLEM. IF HE LIVED IN JAPAN HE WOULD HAVE DONE HIMSELF IN BY NOW. NO MORE TAXES - WE ARE TAXED TO DEATH. I LIVE IN NY AND THEY ARE TAXING US ON EVERYTHING AND NO END IN SITE.

The root of the problem is never mentioned.....We hear only that more money is needed.....NEVER, EVER do you hear anything about doing with less. To all you Obama people that voted in good conscious: Yes, he inherieted a deficit, but the way to combat it was not to triple the amount. You will be taxed in more ways than you ever imagined, you have to be. If you do not help to stop Nationalized health care you will not only be taxed even more, but you will not be feeling well when you pay the taxes, then you will have given this government, (joke) dictatorship, the power to control every single aspect of your life. Call your elected officials, stop the insanity.

Why are none of these so-called experts considering the FairTax?

It would alleviate business of the burden of playing tax collector for the government and instantly make the US more attractive for businesses than any other country in the world.

http://www.fairtax.org

European countries, to varying degrees, allow foreign companies the opportunity to reclaim VAT paid. This eliminates or reduces VAT as a cost of doing business. Should the US adopt a VAT, they will likely do the same.

Wouldn't you just raise the taxes linked to SS and Medicare if it were becoming unsustainable? Why would you want to fund those from general taxation?

And since VAT is refunded upon export, it would NOT hurt US competitiveness overseas. Two errors in one article...

In fact, with universal healthcare funded through a VAT or income tax, it would probably INCREASE our competitiveness overseas, because healthcare plans would no longer be a component cost of our exports, like they are now.