[1fastredsc]

I need some help understanding taxes, since i may be starting my life long career some day when done with college. Plus it was picking my brain today that i didn't have a solid grasp of it.

Here's the background, so i noticed when receiving my pay stubs in the mail at the same time as my father over the summer while doing ground maitanence for the company he works for. I'd look at my check, and say i made 700 dollars for two weeks, my tax deduction would be around 50-60 dollars, or around 10ish %. Then i'd look at my dad's check and it would be for say 2400 dollars, but his pay before deductions was more like 3500 or something in that range, around 25% (maybe more i am just winging what little i can remember).

My question is what does the taxing curve look like in relation to income? Is it slowly parabolic at first then linear (poor don't pay too much, but then it linearizes at a certain income level)? Does it plateau at some point so that higher income people don't pay the same % of taxes (i hear a lot of dems complaining about the bush tax cut for the top 10% or something to that end)? Do you think the taxing structure is fair?