Progressive Tax Laws and Policy Recommendations

Student
Instructor
Course
Date
Article 1
The first paper I read was 'The Tax Law of Palmyra: Evidence for Economic History in a City of the Roman East' by Mathews. The paper's central idea was the revision of the tariff and regulations of the Palmyra tax. The main aim of the revision was to resolve future disputes that arose between merchants and tax collectors. It was meant to promote clarity of the laws, which consistently brought problems to the city. Therefore, the article's main argument is that tax laws are not permanently established but offer room for revision and adjustment to suit all the business parties. The argument did not convince me since it lacked factual tax –justification. Besides, the article provides a comprehensive background of the Palmyra and the key ideologies that led to the establishment of the tax laws. Mathews noted that Palmyra's history could be linked to a pre-classical period where taxation played an essential role in stabilizing its growth. Specific documents, the Assyrian documents, were also established to ensure a reliable and progressive growth of the city. The documentation of the tax laws was based on the reliable growth of the city and the actual resources that were within the city. Besides, Mathews argued that the tax resources were meant to promote town planning and growth.
Based on my reaction to the article, I have realized that tax law implementation is a crucial aspect that started in the pre-classical period. It means that the current law adjustments are based on pre-classical times. Besides, I learned that tax law implementation should also be based on specific goals and the available sources within the city or town. I agree that the laws play an essential role in streamlining and enhancing town planning. The key reason for enhancing the growth and development of a city or town is through proper taxation and mobilization of the resources. For instance, in Palmyra, the revision of the tariff and regulations of tax was meant to resolve future disputes that rose between merchants and tax collectors (Mathews 159). Besides, the aim was to promote clarity of the laws, which consistently brought problems in the city. Therefore, the tax laws are not permanently established but offer room for revision and adjustment to enhance town growth and development. There is a need to focus on better frameworks that promote growth and development.
Lastly, I agree with Mathews' ideology that taxation in the pre-classical period focused on suitable ideologies due to Assyrian documents. It is not the first time I have heard about such documents. These are critical documents that played an essential role in formulating the tax laws. Besides, they are considered to streamline all the disputes of different business parties. Therefore, the article successfully addresses the key historical adjustments of tax laws which are still considered in the business field.
Article 2
The second paper I read is 'The Case for a Progressive Tax: From Basic Research to Policy Recommendations' by Saez and Diamond. The article's central idea is that a fair tax distribution is a key requirement in resource optimization. Different academic kinds of literature have established different models for optimizin...