Should Individual Tax Records Be Public Information?

A recent essay in the New York Times raises the question as to whether individual tax payments should be considered public information.  It has been suggested that public disclosure of tax payments would create pressure to correct inequalities and loopholes in the current tax system.  Surprisingly, strict secrecy regarding tax records is a relatively modern aspect of the system.
In the first half of the 20th century, Congress twice required tax disclosure. In 1923 and 1924, individual and corporate taxpayers had to make public their tax payments but not entire returns. Proponents of disclosure said the measure would encourage tax compliance and reduce improper business conduct...

In the wake of accounting scandals and corporate earnings frauds of recent years, not to mention aggressive tax avoidance schemes, some experts say we should bring back corporate tax disclosure...

“If people could see how terrible the system is,” Professor Kotlikoff said, “perhaps then the appeal of a simple, straightforward and fair tax system might rise.”

Presidential candidates do release abbreviated tax records for public inspection.  Should individuals be expected to do the same?

Link, via The Cap Times (whence the image).

Hey, yeah, then we can wear our addresses on our foreheads to prove that we're not squatting in someone's house, and publish our medical records to prove we're not committing insurance fraud.

Who the hell comes up with this?
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Each year, every individual's income and tax information is released to the public here in Norway. It's an awful system. The newspapers fill up with detailed information on celebrities' personal financial information, everyone goes online to pry into the incomes of coworkers, bosses and neighbors. Kids of low income parents are bullied, and criminals do research into whose homes will be a profitable burglary job.
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And then they are amazed as to wy more and more people desperately try to regain some of their privacy by going illegal when it come to getting income and wealth...
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Full disclosure would be a really bad idea. Returns contain far too much information for them to be public knowledge. Even just name, salary, and total amount paid isn't really anyone's business.

Some things I'd like to see released though. How much are different deductions and credits actually costing in terms of revenue? How much do the people claiming various deductions make?
Oh and here's a big one- a list of incomes (no identifiers) and total tax paid- federal income, capital gains, state income. Yes, state income taxes can appear on federal returns because they're deductible. That would settle a lot of arguments about taxes paid by people at various income levels.
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Several local taxes are already public information depending on the jurisdiction in the US. The property tax is the big one. But, I can't see full disclosure of the income tax being a positive thing - when folks suddenly known how they compare to the market, they'll adjust to try improve their lot. Some companies may go under in the process or, at least, change dramatically.
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In France it's possible to obtain the amount of tax paid by somebody if you live in the same area (+/- county). But they don't show you how that tax was calculated, and it's forbidden to make it public.

Pretty much useless, ans that's a good thing.
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