Viewpoints: Europe tax model delivers much more (What Europeans get for their taxes)

[pampango]

http://www.sacbee.com/2010/04/15/2679568/europe-tax-model-delivers-much.html

"Europe frequently plays the punching bag role during these moments because there is a perception that the poor Europeans are overtaxed serfs. But a closer look reveals that this is a myth that prevents Americans from understanding the vast shortcomings of our own system.

A few years ago, an American acquaintance of mine who lives in Sweden told me that, quite by chance, he and his Swedish wife were in New York City and ended up sharing a limousine to the theater district with a southern senator and his wife. This senator, a conservative, anti-tax Democrat, asked my acquaintance about Sweden and swaggeringly commented about "all those taxes the Swedes pay."

To which this American replied, "The problem with Americans and their taxes is that we get nothing for them." He then told the senator about the comprehensive services and benefits that Swedes receive. "If Americans knew what Swedes receive for their taxes, we would probably riot," he told the senator. The rest of the ride to the theater district was unsurprisingly quiet.

When you sum up the total balance sheet, it turns out we Americans pay out just as much as Europeans – but receive a lot less for our money. In this economically competitive age, these kinds of services increasingly are necessary to ensure healthy, happy and productive families and workers. Europeans have these supports, but most Americans do not – unless you pay a ton out-of-pocket. Or unless you are a member of Congress, which of course provides European-level support for members and their families.

[MrScorpio]

1. The sad thing about this article...

Is that it'll go right over the teabaggers' heads.

Check out the comments

[Festivito]

2. UNDERSTATED: We pay MORE and get less.

We don't pay just as much as Europeans, we pay more and get less.

For example, health care, they pay about 3K$ per capita per year while we pay 7K$ per capita per year. WE PAY MORE.

WE GET LESS.
We're not covered if we lose our job, they are.
We're not covered for pre-existing conditions, they are.
We're not covered if the insurance company denies our claim, they are.
We get to throw fundraisers for family and friends to get lifesaving health care, they don't.
And, on and on and on.
They pay less and get more.
We pay more and get less.

Add health care, retirement, sick days, vacation days they get and we don't, disability insurance, unemployment insurance, ... to our salary and look at our real tax ... it's closer to US paying 80%. They pay 50% and get refunds for doing things in certain ways.

That's not just as much as they pay, we pay more and get less.