Democracy Gone Astray

Democracy, being a human construct, needs to be thought of as directionality rather than an object. As such, to understand it requires not so much a description of existing structures and/or other related phenomena but a declaration of intentionality.
This blog aims at creating labeled lists of published infringements of such intentionality, of points in time where democracy strays from its intended directionality. In addition to outright infringements, this blog also collects important contemporary information and/or discussions that impact our socio-political landscape.

All the posts here were published in the electronic media – main-stream as well as fringe, and maintain links to the original texts.

[NOTE: Due to changes I haven't caught on time in the blogging software, all of the 'Original Article' links were nullified between September 11, 2012 and December 11, 2012. My apologies.]

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Families Spend More On Tax Than Necessities: Report

Canadians spend more money on taxes than basic necessities, according to a report by the Fraser Institute.

Roughly 43 per cent of an average family's income was spent on taxes last year, compared to 37 per cent on food, shelter and clothing, the report said.

"Taxes are far and away the largest and fastest increasing expense in the average household budget," said Charles Lammam, associate director of the Fraser Institute.

He noted that the situation has reversed since 1961, when the tax bill for the average family represented only 33 per cent of total income.

One reason Canadians pay so much in tax is they don't fully understand their tax bills, says Lammam, who co-authored the Canadian Consumer Tax Index.

"It's very difficult, first, to keep track of some of the taxes you pay. Some of the taxes are hidden."

Lammam says another part of the problem is budget deficits at all levels of government as taxes don't cover current levels of government spending.

"The outlook for taxpayers is bleak, since deficits must one day be paid for by working Canadians unless governments take serious steps to reduce spending," Lammam said.

Original Article
Source: huffingtonpost.ca
Author: cbc

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