From Deontology to Practical Application: The Vision of a Good Society and the Tax System‪.‬

This article presents two arguments--one deontological and the other consequential--which, jointly and separately, aim to justify redistributive taxation and the resulting imposition of a greater tax burden on the wealthy. Both arguments are based on a community-oriented rather than an individual-centered view of society and are drawn from an analysis of the role that individual and collective rights and responsibilities ought to play in contemporary tax policy-making. According to the deontological approach, the wealth belonging to the affluent is not merely the product of their efforts but also results from benefits conferred by social cooperation and good fortune. The article expands on this line of thinking by suggesting that the tax burden allocation is just if all members of society are guaranteed certain basics that ensure adequate living conditions and represent their fair share of the fruits of social cooperation. Since the pre-tax distribution of resources is so unequal, this approach to taxation is expected to result in some form of redistribution.