Toledo union journal. [volume] (Toledo, Ohio) 1942-current, 1944-11-03
Spending
Your Buck
Local IL Research Dept.

Labor is apprehensive of
what a Republican victory at
the polls would mean to the
wage Garner.
Repressive legislation which
would undoubtedly come from
a Republican administration
and congress is not the. sole
cause for labor's worry. Add
ed taxation for the workers
would surely come, and added
taxation is just another form
of wage cut.
When old "Uncle Andy"
Melon was Secretary of the
Treasury, he handed the busi-
ness people of this country a
nice gift in the form of hand
ing back taxes to the people
who could afford to pay them.
In return for this, the taxes
for the workers actually in
creased, because the money
for maintaining the govern
ment had to come from some
where.
TAXES
Taxes have always been a
stumbling block for politi-
clans. Even some of the best
politicians get acute jitters
when a bill comes before con-
gress to increase taxes. Thus,
since the big business interests
make it a point to constantly
watch Congress for any bills
which are against their eco
nomic interests, the men of
Congress hesitate to tax the
rich as heavily as they might.
On the other hand, since the
people are more or less dis
organized and disunited for
many reasons, it is not always
too difficult for congress to
go for a tax bill which hits
the plain people and workers.
But even then, congressman
are shalty and hesitant, be-
cause they realize that taxa
ton has been the bugaboo of
all ages.
Senator Taft and his col
legues have long been worried
about the so-called initiation
ary gap caused by the alleged
high income of the workers.
Their answer to this alleged
problem is a sales tax which
we know hits the low-income
brackets the hardest blow.
A MODEL BUDGET
A model budget was recent
ly prepared by the Heller
committee of the University of
California. This has been gen.
orally accepted as the most re-
liable study of wartime living
standards which has been pre-
pared. The budget study
shows that a family of four
with an income of $4,000 per
year living at minimum de-
cent wartime standard of liV-
ing would be $191.71 cents in
the red at the end of the year.
Addition of a sales tax to
the budget of this family of
four would either mean that
the budget would 60 still
deeper in the red in order to
meet the tax, or be forced to
curtail purchase of some of
the necessary items in its
budget which gave it a de
cent American standard of
living.
Even a 10 per cent sales tax
would fail to raise the money
needed by the government.
Such a tax would raise an
estimated four billions dollars,
whereas the government esti-
mates its needs at 10 billions
dollars. Thus, this inequitable
and unjust taxation would fail
to accomplish its purpose by
ID billion dollars and at the
same time create unrest and
dissatisfaction a m ong the
group who would be forced to
pay it.
Money that could be taxed
to raise this l6 billion dollars
is being piled up by industry
at a rapid rate, yet, Senator
Taft and his group in Wash
ington close their eyes to this
and prefer to take it from the
people who are least able to
bear the tax.
Sen. Taft illustrates once
again one of the primary
causes for the war of l776,
taxation without representa-
ton. If Taft represents the
people of Ohio then Local IL
is an agent for the National
Association of Manufacturers.