Optimal for what objective?
Apple definitely benefits from many resources the US and China provide, from roads to police.
Roads are already financed by vehicle registration/fuel taxes. Police are funded partially from property taxes. Besides, most businesses don't crime by themselves. They're mostly caused by humans, which are already taxed.
But that’s besides the point, these were just two examples of the way businesses benefit from the societal infrastructure around them. They should pay a part of that infrastructure.
“general efficiency” is not a thing. A thing is efficient in terms of how much of some good it provides in return for how much of some cost.
You do realize that the debt eventually comes due, right? It's not like debt is a money printer. If you're against people being able to defer capital gains, there are other ways around it in addition to taxing corporations.
Very rich people don't ever want to spend every dollar they make , actually they are very restrained in their expenses ,so by using the margin loans against assets to finance what it is a proportionally modest lifestyle they get to have it their way while they are alive, which is having their number to be higher than everybody else, and being in the Forbes 400.
When the tax comes due at their death , they are not alive to witness their net worth cut in half or whatever it might be.
Society hates that because it wants to force rich people to do what they don't want and to face their own demise.
It has to be said, for all the hatred towards rich oil sheiks, they spend a lot because they know that their status in their country and in the Royal tribe is determined by the size and quality of their toys, their personal branding depends upon having the largest house, the most rare goldtop Ferrari etc.
America could use some of genuine appreciation for toys, because they dilute rich people into irrelevance.
In America people genuflect to a number instead. MarketCap, Unicorn status, Asset under managment, net worth. Once you decided to genuflect to something it might as well be toys.
Please provide some evidence, because I think only a narrow group of right-wing economists say that.
Taxes are generally applied where money is transacted, such as income and sales. For economic and legal purposes, corporations are entities just like people. They earn money, save it, pay it, invest it, etc. IME, they try to come up with every argument, sane or bizarre, to avoid contributing their share of taxes.
https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2012/07/18/156928675/epis...
no transcript unfortunately, but the summary seems to be that economists across the political spectrum agrees with it.
edit: listened to the podcast. the relevant section is at around 12:30. the reasoning seems to be that corporate taxes discourages corporations from reinvesting their profits, and if want corporate taxes because corporations are mostly owned by rich people, you should tax them directly.