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June 04, 2006
TAXING MATTERS
by Tina Grazier
Over the weekend I watched "It Runs in the Family", one of those "remember
when" movies narrated by the oldest child and set in the middle to late forties.
One scene showed the neighbors rushing around the neighborhood carrying
lamps, linens, lawnmowers and pottery as if headed for a swap meet. The
narrator quickly informs us however, that their real mission is to quickly hide all
their newly acquired belongings in other people's houses down the block
because soon they will be visited by the tax man. The next scene shows the
main family ushering this dreaded government "visitor" through their home
where he is seen snooping in all the cupboards, closets and drawers. He
inquires about a shiney new refrigerator...the mother insists they got it from the
Salvation Army. The tax man begins to argue and the oldest kid chimes in,
head bobbing wildly, and says that they got it from the Salvation Army, just like
his mom said. The tax man narrows his pudgy eyes and asks the kid about
new toys that he might have acquired since the last audit. The bit is both amusing
and creepy. It reminded me of the times I've endured sales tax audits.
Next I was reading National Review and came across, "Rockin the Right", their list
of the 50 greatest conservative rock songs. Among my favorites was George
Harrison's "Taxman" by the Beatles:
"If you drive a car, I'll tax the street
If you try to sit, I'll tax your seat
If you get too cold, I'll tax the heat
If you take a walk, I'll tax your feet... (and their final jab at death taxes)
Now my advice for those who die
Declare the pennies on your eyes." (George was always my favorite Beatle!)
I soon found myself looking at our tax system once again. My search brought me
to many websites of interest, including one that Drzal would like featuring
unflattering caricatures of GWB. But the most interesting site
(www.buildfreedom.com/tl/rape8.shtml) featured tax history sprinkled with quotes
from the writings of Charles Adams. In his book titled "FIGHT, FLIGHT, AND
FRAUD: The Story of Taxation", he asserts that history and the fall of great nations
can be attributed to taxes.
In 1894 the United States adopted an income tax and Britian passed a death tax
law with progressive rates. It wasn't long
before the progressive rates were a part of taxation everywhere. Within one year
the U.S. tax law was challenged in Pollock v. Farmers Loan and Trust Co. One
lawyer remarked, "If the rate is 2% today, it could be 20% tomorrow". Imagine the
complete and utter indignation on this lawyers face as he spoke! The topper
though, is that the case was decided when the Supreme Court of the United States
repealed the tax; it was deemed UNCONSTITUTIONAL!
Currently, citizens bringing tax matters before most judges in
the U.S. courts will find that all references to the constitution will earn them a
contempt citation complete with jail time.
So my question is, if it was unconstitutional then why is it not unconstitutional now?
The answer of course is the Sixteenth Ammendment which states, "The Congress
shall have the power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source
derived, without apportionment among the several States, without regard to any
census or enumerations." Some folks don't believe the ammendment was never
legally ratified but whether it was or it wasn't, the time has come to dump the
ammendment and the current tax system in favor of a new and better way.
To quote the Heritage Foundation, "The goal of tax policy
should be to raise the amount of money needed to fund legitimate functions
of government while doing the least amount of damage to the economy and
respecting the principles of treating the taxpayer equally."
This goal (if achived) would sure beat the IRS acting the part of
that slimey tax man snooping around in all of our drawers and closets. Yeah, yeah,
yeah...yeaaah!
Posted by Melody at June 4, 2006 03:37 PM
Comments
Thanks for that article Tina, really enjoyed it! I think you are off to a great start as a writer.
Some of our readers probably think we share a cubicle at the ER and I could have just as easily spun my chair around to make this comment. However, just a little tidbit for the readers, Tina and I have never even met, least not in person. Which is not to imply that the ER building is all that huge. No, actually this is all arranged via the internet. Most of the time we never know what the other is writing about until it's done. Then we ALL get to see it.
I write from a laptop at my favorite haunt, "Raffles Hotel" (where Stienbeck wrote) in Singapore and Tina writes from high atop her Paris Penthouse overlooking the River Sein and Notre Dame Cathedral... oh ok, now I'm pulling your chain! lol We are both here in Chico, ummm, least I think we both are, aren't you Tina???? Uh, Parle vous Francaise???
Posted by: Jack Lee at June 5, 2006 08:06 AM
Non, Jacque, Je ne parle pas Francaise...and I'd rather live where Steinbeck wrote given the choice. Thanks for the kind words and Chico has been my home for almost 20 years now...I'm a refugee from the greater Bay Area, both regionally and politically. If it makes the old timer's feel better they can think of me as a hometown girl driven from my sleepy cow town by the dreaded growth monster!
Posted by: Tina at June 5, 2006 08:23 AM
Nick, Benevolent progressive? Breathe, you need oxygen...that's moronic!
Posted by: Tina at June 6, 2006 07:35 AM
I'm sure Nick was just kidding, he is a rock solid conservative, even more so than me, if you can imagine that. lol
Posted by: Jack Lee at June 6, 2006 08:47 AM
Jack & Nick, Sorry if my quip was misunderstood, I was just trying to be funny about benevolent and progressive being used together like that...you know, oxymoron? I did NOT mean to imply that Nick...well I hope you get it now. And thanks, guys.
Posted by: Tina at June 7, 2006 08:28 PM
No problem Tina, it was a great article.
And the latest census came out it goes jack, then to the right of him, attila the hun, then me.....lol
How did "Right of Atilla the Hun" become a comparrison in the first place.
Maybe Tasker can tell us.
Posted by: Nick at June 8, 2006 04:36 AM