Taxing and spending

Re “Past GOP govs. had guts for budget fixes,” column, March 10

I hate to disagree with George Skelton, but closing tax loopholes isn’t the same as increasing taxes. In a progressive tax system in which the tax rate is supposed to increase as one’s income increases, closing wealthy-only tax loopholes ensures that those whose economic well-being has dramatically increased pay their fair share of taxes on that increase.

Truth is, when those who have benefited the most don’t pay their fair share of taxes, the tax burden gets shifted to workaday people and the shrinking middle class, where it has a far bigger effect on the overall standard of living. Perhaps the real question is, are we going to have a tax structure based on fairness or continue to support economic policies that amount to socialism for the rich?

Shawn Casey O’Brien

Santa Monica

Skelton has advocated raising the income tax, the sales tax and even repealing Proposition 13. However, as a political columnist, he does a disservice by not chronicling how spending increases under the Schwarzenegger administration have outstripped revenue, even though revenue increased faster than inflation and population. Why doesn’t he document the dramatic increases in public payrolls and associated benefits and inflation-adjusted salary? Why do we never hear about the headlock the teachers union has on the Legislature that prevents any meaningful overhaul of the bloated, failing education system?

He has an obligation to not simply be a mouthpiece for the far-left tax-and-spend Legislature.

Matt Skefich

Goleta