Are you are tax shirker? Are you always trying to avoid paying your fair share? Are there children who are languishing so you can have the latest technological toy? Then, hi, Mr. or Ms. Conservative. Just keep putting the bills on the federal credit card. We won't invest in the kids and then they can pay the taxes we all should have been paying.

So isn't that why:

Last week the Congressional Budget Office joined the IRS in releasing tax numbers for 2005, and part of the news is that the richest 1% paid about 39% of all income taxes that year. The richest 5% paid a tad less than 60%, and the richest 10% paid 70%. These tax shares are all up substantially since 1990, and even somewhat since 2000.

Then why do honest wealthy people like Warren Buffet agree can and should pay taxes?

In fact, plenty of wealthy 1% ers believe they should pay more. Of course, they are less selfish. Or perhaps they WANT to invest in their country. It's patriotic to do so.

NStuff's comment only reflects that the disparity between the have's and the have not's has only grown more and more. If the middle class were healthy and reaping the benefits of the economy then they would comprise a larger part of the federal tax revenue.

I don't understand why conservatives can't perform simple math.

Nstuff you make the point that the chasm between the earnings of the super rich and middle class has grown. Agree Bobby..the rich are getting richer and the rest are not increasing earnings at the same rate. So while the richest 1%-10% pay more total $ as a group, they stay abundantly, and some would say exhorbitantly wealthy. The rest of us pay a higher percentage of earnings after deductions, and feel the pinch more, which is Buffet's argument.