Reply #12: Here's how to explain it so even a freeper can understand.

[KnaveRupe]

Imagine two people, one who makes $10,000/year, and one who makes $1,000,000/year. Suppose the flat tax rate is 25%. (Remeber, the goal is nice round numbers for the Freeper.)

After paying taxes, the person earning $10,000 only has $7,500 left. If the poor bastard's rent + utilities = $500/month, that's another $6,000 for housing. If he can get by on $100/ month for food, that's another $1,200. He'll have to get by on $300 worth of clothing for the year just to meet the basic necessities of life. (Food, shelter, clothing.) And at the end of the year, he's still just barely treading water.

Now, let's head out to the 'burbs. After taxes, Joe Millionaire has $750,000 left over. To keep it all nice and round numbers, let's assume his mortgage + utilities = $10,000/month. Let's suppose his food bill is $2,000 a month (he buys caviar and champagne, rather than ramen noodles and malt liquor) And let's suppose he's a raving metrosexual who drops $20,000 a year on clothes.

Joe Millionaire still has $586,000 left over at the end of the year to buy Porsches, vacation in Arruba, and invest in his kids' trust funds.

THAT'S why the flat tax hurts the poor more than the rich - food, shelter, clothing. Those basic necessities don't scale equally.