This is more a symptom than any cause of anything.
The US has significantly more income inequality (as measured by the Gini coefficient) than countries like Sweden or France. This is not something that's getting better. In 1978, the average executive earned thirty-five times more than the average worker. Now, that number is three hundred times more (other countries range from 11-50). If your wealth is being accumulated into fewer and fewer hands, then obviously those fewer and fewer hands will bear more and more of the tax burden. This is the natural result of unregulated capitalism. Those who have the capital get more of it. Those who don't have it get less and less. Despite our talks of the American dream, there aren't nearly enough exceptions to this rule.
The tax system is probably progressive enough on the surface, but what you need is for income equality to head the other direction. That will change the balance of tax burden, and make life a hell of a lot better for the working people of America.
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