ArthurDent's Journal: Death and Taxes

I was reading a blog entry over at www.rachellucas.com today and was compelled to respond to the overwhelming stupidity of it all. Basically Ms. Lucas claimed that taxes were in effect stealing. Let's take this one step at a time:

IT'S MY MONEY!

I don't think anybody will argue that point.

Not yours. Not the government's. Not the welfare sow's.

Um, do you really want that "sow's" children to starve because you're too damn cheap to help her out? Aren't most states getting the picture on welfare and making it do what it was supposed to which is helping people out on a temporary basis until they can get back on their feet? For God's sake, I live in Massachusetts, which in case you haven't heard is the biggest welfare state in the country! Even here welfare reform has reduced the rolls by a wide margin, trying to get the leaches out of the system. Just because you can't be bothered to pay attention doesn't mean that the system isn't working.

MINE. Mine, mine, mine!

Okay. You've made your point.

I earned it, and when the IRS confiscates it from me, that is STEALING.

No, try again. You GIVE your money to the IRS so that the government can do things that would be difficult to accomplish yourself. Like defending our country for instance. The fact is that left to their own devices (untaxed) people will not use their money for good purposes. Do you really think that lowering taxes on the rich will lead them to give money away to help the poor? If you do you ought to get your head examined. The realistic fact is that we NEED the government to take our money to protect us from ourselves! We need the government to do the things that everyone agrees need to be done, but won't get done without everyone being forced to contribute to it.

I work. They pay me. That would make it MY MONEY.

Alright already! Nobody's arguing the point!

The ONLY reason I write that check every April 15 (I'm self-employed so it's not taken out of my pay), is because I don't want to go to prison.

Nobody said your motives have to be pure, we just all happen to agree as a people that you have to do it!

I fork over MY MONEY to the government so that they can dole it out to the brood mare down the street who has four kids she can't support, because I don't want to go to prison.

Oh, so now we finally get to the real issue! If you don't like how your money gets spent, we have this wonderful system that helps you get your voice heard. It's called voting! Perhaps you've heard of it. You have no right to complain about how your money is spent. If you don't like it vote different. If that doesn't work then there are sufficiently more people in the country (or your state) that believe that the money should be spent in a different way. In that case you happen to just lose. The fact is that the government serves the majority because it is designed to help the most people that it can. Being in the minority sucks, but that's the way it is. Live with it.

If there's one thing I can't stand it's a person who gripes about the current system but has no better solution to put forward. Here's your reality check. We've come to this point in our governmental system for a reason. This is the best that we could come up with over the last 200+ years. So if you've got any better ideas, then say so, otherwise shut up and deal with it!