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>The government receives less tax revenues because 20% of the population is no longer working (and paying taxes).

The assumption is that machines exist that are more productive than all these people no longer working. If these machines didn't exist, then these people would still be productively employed.

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Ahh yes, then we shall tax the machines!

The machines don't make money, the owners make the money. So we will end up taxing the owners - which will already happen under the current system.

Except if consumers don't have jobs they won't be able to purchase the products made by machines, therefore the owners will NOT make the money, and the economy will enter into a "death spiral".

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