We hear a lot these days about “progressive” this or “progressive” that – a “progressive” politician and/or a “progressive” idea. But what does the term “progressive” really mean? How about some examples.
It is common to refer to our federal income tax system as being a “progressive” tax. This means that rather than a flat tax imposed as a fixed percentage tax on everyone regardless of their level of income (e.g. “everyone pays 10 percent of their income in taxes”), under our “progressive” income tax scheme, the more taxable income a person reports, the higher the rate of tax on the last or next dollar earned. So, the more productive a person, the more the federal government taxes them in order to fund many activities that are not the proper role of government. As Karl Marx wrote, “From each according to his ability, to each according to his need.”
In modern political parlance, being a “progressive” means that you are for the government involving itself in, and intruding into, every nook and cranny of everyone’s personal and business life.
Rather than bandying about the term “progressive” so much, I suggest that we bring back into more common usage the term “repressive.” As in let’s repress individual freedoms, individual initiative, free enterprise, market-based economics, individual responsibility, personal liberty and rights, and patriotism. The term “repressive” seems to fit so much better in reality – whether for politicians or for their wacky and dangerous ideas.
NORMAN J. SILBER
Gilford