The federal government doesn't place a VAT or a sales tax on things but you'll be hard-pressed to find a state that does not do that. So while saying that income tax may not be the correct thing to hit people with taxes that's not the only tax that we have that is burdening us. So there is already a consumption based tax placed upon everyone. If there's a way to avoid sales tax please let me know so I can do it.

What the article does just briefly brush over is that 20% of GDP is needed to pay for the welfare state. That's actually the fundamental problem that we have going on right now. This has not incentivized people to get better jobs it has not incentivized people to maintain family relationships the welfare state has utterly failed in every goal that it's stated it was going to do. The one thing that it has done is make a permanent generational underclass that can continue to be exploited and manipulated. There is literally no incentive from any government person to actually fix the problem because once they do that they no longer have a third of the population that they can willingly manipulate. So all we get is continual lip service and more subsidies to keep people in this position generationally.

> PS. States like Texas and Florida seem to get by fine without a state income tax.

An income tax is just one of dozens of taxes that states collect. Here is Texas:

https://bivisual.cpa.texas.gov/CPA/opendocnotoolbar.htm?docu...

Note that this doesn't include property taxes, since the state doesn't collect them (they are local taxes).

> But I’ve always wondered why states that favor income taxes feel the need to have their own separate (and complicated) income tax system. Why don’t they tell taxpayers “send us a copy of your federal forms and then pay us X% of what you paid the IRS”? Are there any states that do that?

The state doesn't need you to send them a copy of your federal forms, they get that data directly from the IRS when you file your federal taxes. I've never heard of any state (that collects an income tax) that doesn't start with your federal adjusted gross income, and then determine your tax by applying the various deductions that the state has determined are worthwhile.

Does this person even know anything about taxation?

A good idea. If there's some sort of a rebate/credit on VAT (as mentioned) to ensure that the poor don't get crushed, it really is a decent proposal to start with.