Originally Posted by Ethersync

Then in 1894 there was a 2% tax on income over ~$80,000 (modern equivalent) after the panic of 1893. The panic of 1893 was largely, if not entirely, caused by the Sherman Silver Purchase Act, which was an attempt by the US government to inflate the value of silver since the market was flooded with it, and the McKinley Tariff which put a near 50% import tax on good brought into the US. The huge supply of newly printed silver notes were used by people to exchange for gold notes causing the US government to run out of gold. Then the shit hit the fan until, I believe it was, JP Morgan bailed out the US Government with a gold loan. So, I misspoke when I said the government did not try to do stupid shit back then. They did in the 1890s, but thankfully they were limited in the damage they could do unlike now.