[wak90]

Normally, I'd just flame you for this.

There's a baseline level of consumption required to survive. Meaning everyone eats, rents, drives to work, buys an entertainment system. Paying for what you consume is a regressive way of generating tax revenue as the tax is raised from the poor masses.

Progressive taxation exists because people with more income have more disposable income. When you tax a poor working single mother of three and she must choose between buying food or paying tax, you will get riots eventually. When you tax a millionaire who's choice is buying a sports car or paying tax, riots don't usually happen.