Reply #18: if we tax their bonuses, they will pay themselves bigger bonuses

[Hamlette]

if you analyze this from a tax policy perspective, when you tax the bankers "themselves" (by which I assume you mean taxing their large salaries and bonuses) they just pay themselves larger salaries and bonuses and pass the difference on to you, the consumer.

If you again, analyze this from a tax policy perspective, you have to tax in such a way as to incentivize moral behavior. Like taxing high volume trading which feeds the bubble/burst cycle which caused the last two banking crashes. Since the profit is small from high volume trading, a tax could put an end to it.

Tax policy can't be based on revenge alone. Smart ppl will figure out a way around it.