Earlier quoted context omitted.
Much of the taxes are there, at least in concept, to cover expenses society has when dealing with the "externalities" of said fun. Some of it though is a remnant of a more "puritan" time.
What are the externalities resulting from purchasing a Porsche besides the usual culprits such emissions etc etc? I'm genuinely curious.
Some economists argue that by taxing these goods, society as a whole spends less on them, but people still get the positional benefits, because the person with the biggest house still can look down on the person with the smaller house, even if the house is only 50% larger, rather than 100% larger. If those goods also have other externalities, like cars do and sprawling suburbs full of mcmansions, then you get a double benefit.