3 The Corporate vs. Individual Asymmetry

dakar afro-cuban jazz, sitar bubblegum dance, electro-alternative r&b · 3:26

Listen on 93

Lyrics

[Verse 1]
A corporation starts with gross revenue in hand
Section nine and eighteen give them quite a plan
Every reasonable expense they can deduct away
Legal fees and office rent, all part of business play
But switch to individuals earning their wage
Different rules apply upon this legal stage

[Chorus]
Corporate versus individual, the asymmetry's clear
Corporations get economic profit, while employees shed a tear
Section eight enumerates what workers can subtract
While businesses deduct it all, that's just a tax law fact
Same input costs for living, different treatment here
Corporate versus individual asymmetry

[Verse 2]
An employee gets gross receipts, but deductions are so few
Only what section eight lists, there's not much they can do
But start a business as individual, the landscape starts to shift
Reasonable expenses flow, it's quite a legal gift
Though section eighteen twelve limits home office space
Still better than employment's restrictive tax embrace

[Chorus]
Corporate versus individual, the asymmetry's clear
Corporations get economic profit, while employees shed a tear
Section eight enumerates what workers can subtract
While businesses deduct it all, that's just a tax law fact
Same input costs for living, different treatment here
Corporate versus individual asymmetry

[Bridge]
If profit represents true surplus, genuine gain
Why don't individuals get relief from life's financial strain?
Food and shelter, transport costs, unavoidable each day
Like corporate inputs, they're required, so why can't they deduct away?
No coherent theory bridges this philosophical divide
Just political carve-outs where logic cannot hide

[Chorus]
Corporate versus individual, the asymmetry's clear
Corporations get economic profit, while employees shed a tear
Section eight enumerates what workers can subtract
While businesses deduct it all, that's just a tax law fact
Same input costs for living, different treatment here
Corporate versus individual asymmetry

[Outro]
Gross receipts with carve-outs for the working class
Economic profit calculation lets corporations pass
The question haunts our tax system, will it ever be resolved?
This asymmetric treatment leaves fairness uninvolved

← 2 Academic Frameworks the Act Ignores | 1 The Cohabitation Contradiction →