And yet we do it every day. Without thinking about it.
The highest taxes in the world of consumption are on liquor and cigarettes. Liquor is disproportionately a high part of most low income person's lives.
Cigarettes are disproportionately consumed by low income people.
Most jurisdictions have penalties for smog and inspections for older cars. Older cars are disproportionately used by low income people.
All of this would be minor except for the nearly complete absence of legal jobs for low income people caused by high minimum wages. No living economist doubts that raising minimum wages excludes low income people from the labor market.
Americans just elected a president and political party that had presided over the most negative four year economic climate in 70 years. The median income actually declined for the first time in my life. The people most harmed by the election are low income people.
I repeat. We seem to be taxing the least among us.