[dragontamer]

What was our tax rate that got rid of our WW2 debt?

Taxes definitely solved that problem. And it even brought about the golden age of post WW2 US economy.

The correct taxes in the correct areas serve as an incentive structure to help encourage businesses and individuals to make good decisions. At least, that's what we did 80 years ago.

[bdangubic]

Taxes would not make top-10 reasons for post WWII “golden age.”

The US Government is at present (without any chances of this being fixed ever again) about the least efficient entity that exists on the Planet Earth and giving it more money will not solve any problem. It will be used though but one of the two political parties to win election(s) and kill any tax law that was previously put in place

[dragontamer]

That's not what I asked

I asked what was the tax rate that got rid of our WW2 debt.

The golden age thing is an aside. Just a reminder that you can't call 1950s America weak on the world stage.

> The US Government is at present (without any chances of this being fixed ever again) about the least efficient entity that exists on the Planet Earth and giving it more money will not solve any problem

Taxes directly solve the debt and deficit problem. Period.

Let's start with things one step at a time. Now that we've had 40 years of trying to drown the budget in a bathtub (and only ballooning our debt), we should seriously start trying something different.

[WarOnPrivacy]

If we're going to play the Either Or game, here's my play.

The 2008 crisis is on a long list of examples of how corporate efficiency harms me.

Governments have a mandate to benefit the public. Conversely, shareholder models encourage exploiting everything they possibly can (for shareholder benefit), corrupting government processes, harming the public and harming the corporation itself.

Instead of the Either Or fallacy, I suggest good-faith examination of actual harms and good. Governments (inc LEO) and corporations famously improve outcomes, when meaningful transparency is mandated, corrupt processes aren't hidden and ethical+competent overseers can pull the needed levers.

[_DeadFred_]

Reminder that for the last 40 years one half of government, the Republican party, has had as their policy 'starve the beast' by allowing rampant spending and cutting taxes in order to make this very claim 'look at how inefficiently we spent your money (when our policy was to create this very situation). Look at all this debt (we intentionally piled on in order to cripple government).'.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starve_the_beast