The Issues, No. 54 - Tax Breaks for Businesses

Particularly with the current financial crisis, in large part caused by corporate greed, it is difficult for most of us to agree that businesses should be provided with tax breaks. I think we all are afraid that any tax breaks we give, particularly to large corporations, will only benefit the corporate executives whose outrageous salaries and golden parachutes are already way out of sight and out of control.

I personally believe that we, as a nation, need to provide tax breaks for our businesses, primarily because our businesses are our employers and our innovators. As our employers, businesses can afford to hire and pay the wages and salaries of more people if they don't have to pay as much taxes. Innovation leads to new business opportunities that lead to new and more employment opportunities and less taxes, again, could mean a company could spend more money on innovation.

Hopefully, with the combination of the collapse of our economy and the government bailout that will help them get back on their feet again, our corporations will reform many of the current practices that caused the economy to collapse, either through their own efforts or through new government regulation and oversight. Once we have businesses again working responsibly, I believe they should be given tax breaks only because those tax breaks will benefit us all in that they will help tremendously to stimulate our economy.