[speaker001:] Yes. Um I guess my initial view is our tax burden hasn't gone down in recent years despite, our total tax burden, despite tax cuts
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] but among industrialized nations we have one of the lowest in, in the world, and in of the matter, you get what you pay for, if we're going to have national health insurance, which seems likely, it's necessarily going to involve more taxes. Uh, I suspect, I take the view that cutting income tax rates has been good for the, the economy, that most other countries have a higher share of the tax burden in various kinds of sales taxes, uh, energy taxes, particularly, and that to the extent we need to raise more taxes, that's the direction we should look.
[speaker002:] Right. Well, I guess I kind of have mixed feelings [LAUGHTER]. Um, you know, you always sit there and out of each pay check so much comes out of it, and you wonder, you know, where's it all going
[speaker001:] Where's it all going?
[speaker002:] and we have such a huge, uh, national deficit, and, and I guess a lot of times there's questions wondering well, if it's doing a whole lot of good. I know there's a lot of social programs out there that need help. But you kind of always wonder, well where's, where's the money going? [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] Well, one, one, one of the big tax that has gone up a lot in this year is the social security tax
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] which in principle is going into, into a big trust fund, but that is a particularly regressive tax, uh, it's a tax on the first dollar earnings, and Senator Moynihan's, uh, proposal to, to, to cut there I think wou-, makes a lot of sense.
[speaker002:] I'm sorry, I couldn't.
[speaker001:] I think Senator Moynihan's proposal to, to cut the social security tax which isn't really going to, going to beef up, up, up the social security program could make a lot of sense.
[speaker002:] Right, right. Yeah, I agree with that. As far as other countries, I'm not, um, I don't keep up on it too much as to far [LAUGHTER] as what, you know, as what they're do-. I know we were in Ireland last year
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] and I know that the tax there is extremely high, much higher than we pay here, but
[speaker001:] Oh, yeah.
[speaker002:] but as far as other countries, I'm not, uh, up to par on [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] I think Japan, I think Japan is probably about equal to ours
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] and other major countries are higher. Our friends were amazed that the sales taxes, the cost of things when they went to Canada not so long ago.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] And, as a whole, most other countries have a higher level of cradle to grave government services, and
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] it's a real, real, they're, they're real trade-offs there.
[speaker002:] Right. Yeah, but, and, and you sit there and wonder, um, I guess this doesn't really have to do with taxes but just money in general, and, and, um, wondering if you're going to have enough when you retire [LAUGHTER] to live on.
[speaker001:] Uh, [LAUGHTER] I, that's, that's a scary thing that there's no, no real knowing about. Uh, the, the there's a lot of inflation risk that isn't taken care of in most private pension plans.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh, yeah, that's true. But, um, are you involved with the legislature up there, or which,
[speaker001:] No, I'm at the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] Uh, part of the Commerce Department.
[speaker002:] Okay.
[speaker001:] Here in Gaithersburg, Maryland.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh. I was just wondering since you said Washington D C, and you, and you picked this topic, I was just [LAUGHTER]
[speaker001:] Well, well
[speaker002:] kind of curious.
[speaker001:] I, I, I didn't pick it, uh
[speaker002:] Oh, you didn't.
[speaker001:] I mean, um, I, like I don't really recall. I may have filled out on the, on the form, but I, I certainly, certainly have the feeling I've been given topics different from the ones that I mentioned before.
[speaker002:] Oh, did you. See, I haven't placed any calls. Did they automatically assign the topic?
[speaker001:] Yes, yes, when you place a call
[speaker002:] Oh, I didn't
[speaker001:] topic is given to you.
[speaker002:] know that. I thought whoever made the call could choose what topic, because I haven't made any calls yet. I've just received some.
[speaker001:] Oh, you should try it.
[speaker002:] Oh, I didn't realize that [LAUGHTER]. Okay. Yeah, because it's kind of a, it can be a rather controversial subject depend on who you're talking to.
[speaker001:] Uh, many of the subjects are. Uh, taxes, taxes especially. Um, one thing that has kept our tax burden high, and this will change somewhat in the next few years is the, is the level of def-, of the defense budget
[speaker002:] Exactly.
[speaker001:] and that's, that same subject,