A national sales tax with a progressive scale. More expensive/luxury items would be taxed at a higher rate than "necessity" items. I know this wold be a hard sell at first, but it seems to me the most fair way to tax. The more you spend, the more you pay. I agree asocial safety net is a good thing, but the size and scope of the current net is getting to be ridiculous, we have a program to give every family a cell phone.. What's next, an Xbox? A car? A cellphone with a data plan..?