Edit: typos
I completely disagree (many rich people think the same way you do, this is not a novel argument, it is as old as taxes themselves), but the point was not on taxes, but on justice.
Meaning that if you pay a tax because - like it or not - you have to pay for it, I should pay it too, if we are in the same situation.
That's what I meant for "social justice", the obligation towards the community to fulfill your duties the same way other members of the community do.
The “community” has very little say in what happens with this money and even if they do, I don’t think it’s always justified because a large group thinks it is.
And finally I think that taxes mostly limit social mobility by putting a cap on what you can do with the money you’ve earned (yourself). I don’t think other people are entitled to such a proportion of my income.
I moved from Europe to a place with significantly lower taxes, I have a lot more to put on the side every month and can take part of it for retiring and part of it to invest in new ideas. Back home I was covering costs + a little consumption and the rest went to the state which realistically didn’t provide for much (social security only helps once you’ve fully landed on the street, universities were pretty mediocre so I studied in the US partially funded by parents and partially through teaching, need private insurance for health care unless you want to wait for ages to get treatment, etc. - so I paid for a lot of things that I couldn’t benefit from). Government functions much better too and filing my taxes took minutes without any external help, so I’m less distracted. And overall I have a way better quality of life and I’m much happier.
The more those who are good at evading taxes get away with it, the more burden the poor and middle class must shoulder.
Now imagine you don't pay taxes and want to move from New York to San Francisco.
Well man, you know what? You did not pay for this road, so for you it's... let's see... 17,433.25 dollars. Paid in advance, thanks.
---
You're from a lower social class, you go to work using public, ehm, sorry, collective transport (it is a private service), because you can't afford to own a car and the gas is so expensive!
And those roads tariffs! they don't care how much you earn, they are the same to everyone, for you as for the richest man in the Country.
Every month you have to pay 400 dollars to the collective transport company, they need to raise the money for building and maintaining the infrastructure and to pay their employees.
You have been thinking about asking for a salary raise, but you've overheard management say "people coming to work with collective transport are often late, thank god there are good workers using cars, those are the ones we should promote"
So you're now thinking about getting into debts to buy a car and gamble or play it safe and accept your salary.
---
Would you prefer it?
Would it favour social mobility?
> I moved from Europe to a place with significantly lower taxes, I have a lot more to put on the side every month
No shit Sherlock!!!
You know what else helped me to put a lot more on the side every month?
Accepting job offers that paid more than the one I had!
Incredible, isn't it?
Try being born there in the same conditions your family was when you were born and then you can compare the two situations.
Anyway what was your Country in Europe?
Because if your family could afford to pay your studies in USA, in Europe you could have lived as a king with that kind of money.
---
OF COURSE if you only think about yourself, being surrounded by people that pay for you while you enjoy the money you earn it's wunderbar!
Not caring about other people's well being, that also is a big relief.
But it has nothing to do with justice, let alone being part of a larger community, called society, that's simply "Homo homini lupus"
