If taxes for welfare programs were voluntary, would you pay anyway?

Lots of republicans are upset about "redistributing the wealth" while democrats support it. I have a question that i would like both sides opinion on.

If the government made taxes on welfare and other like programs voluntary, would you still give your money? You wouldnt have to pay a dime in extra taxes if you didnt want to, and if you support these programs, you could pay as much or as little as you like.

This way the people who are tired of their hard earned money going to someone else can keep their money, and the people who want to help others still can.

Do you think people would actually still pay a voluntary tax if they didnt have to?

Opinions from both sides are appreciated.

I posed this question at the end of a very long thread, and thought it was interesting enough for it to have its own thread.

reply to post by tdubz


Of course I would.

What many corporations do is donate goods or money to charities, scholarships, churches, hospitals, and other welfare programs in huge amounts, and the goverment then gives them a huge tax break.

When Katrina struck, Home Depot donated lots of materials (wood, paint, nails, etc.) to help rebuild houses. They spend close to a hundreds million on donations, and in the end, I'm sure their tax break was 4x that.

Look at it this way - you can give money to the goverment, likely to never see it again, or you can give/donate money for helping fellow Americans, and see what it does, as well as giving you a huge tax break.

I've also wondered if ANYONE would willingly sacrifice their money for welfare bums, many of whom are illegal Mexicans, if they were not coerced into it by the US Government. My own answer is a definite "Hell NO!". Stop paying Mexicans to rape our country and stop paying bums (American or otherwise) period.

Thanks for asking.

The term "voluntary tax" is a misnomer.

Taxes are mandatory

Contributions are voluntary.

I don't mind my taxes going for welfare to help poor people.
I do mind my taxes going to corporations in the form of subsidies, when they show record profits every quarter.

End corporate welfare.

No, sadly I would not.
I am for a consumer tax and not an income tax.
If I were poor I would want all the help I could get.
If I were rich I would want to keep all I had.
If all the poor Democrats woke up tomorrow rich, they would be rich Republican's.
People are basically all the same. Money determines your political affiliation. tree huggers and Christian conservatives will stick with what they perceive as the left or right positions...but politicians of both parties know that there isn't a difference between them.

Some people are generous and would continue to be so regardless of tax brackets.......most people are not.

ergo......lets tax the really rich because alot of the really rich didn't get that way through honest and hard work....they were born that way or defrauded people to get that way. George Bush born in any normal family would be lucky to be making ends meet working 70 hrs a week between two jobs. I'm tired of socialism for the rich....uh, because I'm not rich. So lets take it the other way. Won't happen of course.

well this would be different from donating to charities. donating to charities gives you a tax break. you dont get a tax break for paying taxes. I guess i should clarify. it would be an optional tax soley to run these programs. It would not be something that would be tax deductible. Think of it the way it is now, you have to pay the tax and you dont get a deduction.