[hattmall]

Everyone keeps saying VAT is regressive, that seems to miss the point that the author explicitly pairs it with UBI.

It's also dubious that a VAT is intrinsically regressive, a VAT is essentially a tax on business revenue. Most items for which the price is set by demand will face downward pricing pressure a force that ultimately results in the VAT contracting profitability and not being regressive.

The issue with the argument that consumption based taxes like a VAT or tariffs are regressive is that it assumes an altruistic pricing mode. A state which is very far from reality. If our multinational corporate conglomerate market dominators could raise prices to absorb all taxes then their current pricing is too low. A case I don't think many would make in the current age of consistent record breaking profits.

The thing to remember is the corporate goal is that prices are set to be the maximum the market will bear.

[cbarnes99]

VAT is intrinsically regressive because poor people spend all of their money, and wealthy people spend almost none of theirs. Sales tax is no different. UBI is also an incredible waste. Don't give money to people who don't need it. The person with the 10 million dollar home doesn't need to receive UBI, and they're spending practically none of their money to contribute back into the system with VAT.