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0 points17186274406mo ago0 comments

Seams like I'm wrong about the general term, which is weird since they tell that definition in several courses in my university. Part of the confusion is maybe that "Steuern" literally means "steerings".

I've found the term that I'm looking for: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steering_tax . It's a bit weird, that most examples there seem to be from Germany or Switzerland. Maybe we just like that concept. But Piguo was a Brit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pigouvian_tax

> but there are a number of misunderstandings in the rest of your post that I don't think I'm going to be able to explain.

Too bad.

> You're also just inventing reasons for taxes in many cases

Most of these are also listed as examples in the Wikipedia articles, the other are very much the official reasoning for these taxes, so I don't agree with that. Of course the government doesn't mind taking some money.

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bpt36mo ago

There are many Pigouvian taxes, but not all taxes are Pigouvian.

The concept of taxation predates the concept of equality or economic influence in society, and there is no "official" reasoning for things like property taxes or income taxes in the US (or anywhere else I'm aware of).

Originally, the government decided how much revenue it needed, and told the subjects of its rule how much they owed, and that was it.

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