Rating: 
Summary: NON-PARTISAN exposé on how our gov't is screwing us
Review: Despite repeated statements to the contrary, THE AUTHOR, DAVID CAY JOHNSTON IS IN FACT A REGISTERED REPUBLICAN.I don't know where people get the idea the author is a liberal. Maybe because his book criticizes George W.'s tax policies. They seem to overlook the fact that he just as often criticizes Bill Clinton's policies. He goes on to show that regardless of party affiliation, for several decades our elected officials in the whitehouse and congress have been continuosly and consistently shifting more and more of the cost of running this country from those who are most able to pay to those who are struggling to get by. I'm about half way through the book, and I'm already thinking I need to buy a copy and give it to everyone I know. I think we should demand our senators and congress people all read this book and then tell us what they are going to do to guarantee the super rich take up their fair share of the tax burden and lighten it for those at the bottom. And if they don't enact it within a year, we'll vote them out office. And we won't accept a short term pacifier that will later transform into an even greater burden. We need a permanent solution. This book explains in terms most people can understand the various ways in which our tax system cheats the average American. Even if the topic of taxes and finances typically makes your brain cloud over, you'll still be understand this book. The use of several examples to explain a given point help you grasp the concepts. I finally got impatient and jumped to the chapter whose title seemed to suggest might it contain the author's suggested solution "Is Reform Possible?". He points out problems with some recently suggested fixes, but doesn't suggest one himself. I think part of the problem is that while most people, after reading this book, will agree our current system is unfair, it's hard to agree on what a fair system would look like. Every American citizen who pays taxes needs to read this book.
Rating:
Summary: Awareness
Review: From the endorsements and some of the other "assessments" of this book I expeceted a screed. But it is not that; this is a primer for awareness of the "tax"-onomy of US taxes, tax collection, tax shelters, and the situation of the IRS. "Perfectly Legal" almost becomes technical at times -- but just when one thinks, "A flowchart would help here," another chapter has started. In sum, it's just technical enough -- after all, I am not trying to understand the tax code. And awareness is step one. Right? The portion of the book on remaking the IRS to be more like a business is its most interesting part. Johnston implies that if the IRS was truly run like a business, quite a few additional collections might have been made. The tiger would purr and smile at his good customers, but he'd also have better teeth. And so we read between the lines that the attempt to revamp has been aborted. One wonders why, and the answer, Johnston repeats, is political (he refers to a "political donor class"). Mr. Johnston, commendably, leaves ideology out of it. The reason this is commendable is because I'm pretty sure no straight mapping from tax evasion to ideology exists. Oliver Warbucks paid his taxes, remember. The book doesn't cover (very much) those folks who believe they shouldn't pay tax, and mostly just talks about people who in fact don't pay tax (whatever their reasoning), or, more accurately, pay less than you'd expect. But I'm a little curious why one would fancy himself not subject to taxation. What are the underpinnings of such a belief? Johnston hints at some (broken government promises for mules and acreage, for instance), but he never really lays it out. And this is too bad, because he has some dire yet refreshing things to say near the end about tax anomie and lawlessness in general. Pronouncements that would be more convincing had he not made such an effort to avoid ideology. The five stars are bestowed because it's timely, relavent, and worth reading. It's also "safe" for both red staters and latte sippers in this age of mindset censorship. And it's an important topic, so enjoy, it, please. But the definitive work on "taxing" has been as yet undiscovered by me.
Rating: 
Summary: Apologist for the IRS
Review: The book has many flaws, and time allows only a few to be highlighted. Firstly, despite the author's vaunted expertise on the tax system, he never examines why we should pay tax at all. There exists principled and reasonable arguments against the income tax, and the author is either unaware of them, or chooses not to mention them. He just blithely assumes that because it is law, just or unjust, the populace should obey, and those that do not, prey on the less well-off. Important questions that bear on the culpability of his targets are never raised. Why should rich people pay more in tax than other people (and I'm not using Mr. Johnston's definition of "more", which means a higher percentage, instead of actually "more money")? Why, as a reward for picking up the bulk of government's tab do they get targeted in books like this? Why does government have the right to deprive its citizens of their private property? Another major flaw is the book's blatant populism. Rich people have always been, and will be, subjects of envy, and Mr. Johnston regrettably makes full use of this base emotion in his readers. A strategy that clearly works, but as reprehensible as when used elsewhere (Rush Limbaugh springs to mind). The author clearly thinks that rich people do not deserve their money, and that they owe society something just because they are rich. He ignores that these people justly earned their reward by providing value to other people, who freely paid for their services. Also, the author, time after time, cleverly makes use of criminal behavior unrelated to the tax issue (eg. during the Enron scandal) to get his readers riled up about something he views as an abuse of the tax system. It is doubtful whether these perceived abuses would stand up by themselves, and therefore needs this handy crutch. The book also signally fails to prove its premise - that there is some conspiracy by rich people to screw the little man. All he gives us are individual instances of abuse, without proving that this is part of a larger pattern. The mere fact that the richest 10% pays 67% of all federal income taxes, despite this imaginary conspiracy, shows how shaky his premise is. Mr. Johnston also has a questionable understanding of economics. He clearly does not understand how flat taxes work - investments are unused pools of money in his world. He also bases arguments on faulty or plain wrong data - e.g. he tells us that government subsidies for sugar encourages the consumption of that commodity, while it is fairly widely known that sugar is not subsidized but protected through quotas, which makes it more, not less, expensive for American consumers (three times more expensive). Finally, what makes this book really deplorable is that it attempts to pin what's wrong with the tax system on rich people, while the real culprit, government, is let off the hook. In fact, Mr. Johnston proposes more government power to fix the system, and seems quite willing to allow the IRS to continue abusing people and confiscating their property (he deplores the reigning in of the IRS after congressional hearings into abuses). I would urge readers to look somewhere else for better analyses of the income tax system and its flaws. A good starting point would be Charles Adams' "For Good and Evil: The Impact of Taxes on the Course of Civilization"
Rating:
Summary: Holy COW!!! So THAT'S how they're getting away with it!
Review: This book is a MUST HAVE for anyone interested in investing, tax shelters, and economic issues of any sort. Out of work? Job got transferred to India? This book explains why: in a nutshell, corporate tax sheltering. This book shall be included in my home reference library, along with all my investing, tax, and estate planning books. Charles Givens must be absolutely spinning in his grave! After reading it, you begin to see how you, too, can partake of some of the strategies within. Stop being a tax peasant!
Rating:
Summary: Patching the Tax System
Review: This book explains the politics of the current U.S. tax system which lowered taxes on the super-rich by raising taxes on the middle class. The author says a total overhaul is needed to cure this disease (but that won't happen soon). I suggest the following "patches" to fix the current system. 1) Raise the standard deduction to $24,000 for married, $12,000 for single, etc.
2) Reduce the Social Security tax to 4% and make it pay-as-you-go again. Wage-earners should then get an automatic 4% raise. The top marginal rate would be raised to 50% to replenish the lost money in the Social Security Trust Fund.
3) Long-term capital gains would be taxed at the individual's rate after a 30% discount.
4) Allow the first $5,000 of dividends and interest to be exempt from taxation.
5) Quadruple the limits of the Alternate Minimum Tax to restore its original intent.
6) Social Security benefits, if taxable, would exempt the first $10,000 of benefits.
7) No one could defer more than 50% of their salary each year, and for no more than ten years in a lifetime. These changes would provide the greatest good for the greatest number in their pursuit of happiness. Its your money, so ask your Congressman for these changes. Talk to your friends and family and see if they agree.
Rating:
Summary: A Very Important book, and very readable!
Review: David Cay Johnston writes very, very well. This book is meticulously researched and occasionally deals with tax dodges of huge complexity, but Mr. Johnston brings it to the reader with clarity and drama. The conspiracy theory implicit in the title will put off some readers. Please forgive it -- Mr. Johnston really does believe that some dirty deals have been done (and says so) but most of the book simply tells the story, and the story is important: Just about all the wealth created in the last three decades has gone to people who make more than a million dollars a year. At the same time, the total tax burden (including ALL kinds of taxes, not just the April 15 kind) has shifted to the middle class and lower -- those making less than $500,000 a year. Part of the reason for this shift is a long, slow increase in tax dodging (legal and illegal) by the richest people and companies. Another part has been by design -- on any basis you choose to look at it, virtually all of the Bush tax cuts have gone to those above the $500k level. The tax system in America is not fair and the principles that undergird it have become tattered. Hopefully this book will help equip and motivate some people with a mind to bring some fairness -- and enforcement -- to the system.
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining Read Like a Novel
Review: A wonderful and well researched book on the growing tax injustices in the system. The author should be thanked for his excellent research and penmanship. Outstanding and gripping book. I love chapter 1, the introduction where the tax lawyer is ferried by private jet by his tax free patron, while the rest of us silently pay our taxes. The book begs the question - does anyone really understand the tax code? A must read and highly recommend. The book contains many charts, graphs, and facts to back up his opinion. After you read, write your congressman. I still advocate a simple flat tax of 17% as per the Forbes election platform but I guess that would cause a lot of unemployment among the accountants, and would never be supported by all the political lobbyists. Jack in Toronto
Rating:
Summary: The King has no Clothes
Review: This book details with facts, the shift of tax burden to the middle and lower class, away from the upper class. As Bush keeps pushing for more and more tax breaks for the rich, it adds to the bill due from the other classes. This is a great example of starving government programs which help the middle and lower class without the political burden of eliminating by law. Education, public works, aid for the poor, aid for college educations and on and on. This book opens your eyes.
Rating:
Summary: An Intelligent Critique
Review: Johnston contributes an excellent review of the history of the American tax system and how it has evolved. The book description will tell you about the major facts uncovered in this book. All of it is verifiable and Johnston has clearly done his research. All of it is crucial information we all need to take to heart. This book should be the subject of every talk show, forum, and class that deals with government and society. Of course, it won't be because Johnston is exposing realities those in power do not want revealed. Though you can hear an excellent interview of Johnston on NPR's Fresh Air program (freshair.npr.org). I would have liked Johnston to have made more of a connection between the present and the robber baron era of the late 19th Century. This country has been returning to that era since the 1980's and that process is being dramatically accelerated by the current administration. Johnston's argument would be greatly strengthened by comparing the two eras to show the similar motivations and corruptions. That is not a criticism but a hope of where Johnston will go next with his writing.
Rating:
Summary: How CEO's make so much?
Review: This is explains the unethical methods used by rich to make money. I am still reading the book. Page 46-49 explains strategy used by CEO to accumulate huge sums.
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