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From: henry@utzoo.UUCP (Henry Spencer)
Newsgroups: can.politics
Subject: Re: Governments don't create wealth, eh?
Message-ID: <4216@utzoo.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 14-Aug-84 17:31:46 EDT
Article-I.D.: utzoo.4216
Posted: Tue Aug 14 17:31:46 1984
Date-Received: Tue, 14-Aug-84 17:31:46 EDT
References: <2032@utcsstat.UUCP>  <1046@dciem.UUCP> <4212@utzoo.UUCP>, <5034@utcsrgv.UUCP>
Organization: U of Toronto Zoology
Lines: 57

> .............................. No organized society exists without
> some form of taxation. As to specific services you get in return,
> how about police protection, military defense, medicare and the
> whole social service system, for starters?

My point was, the bill isn't itemized that way.  I have no objection
to paying for specific services, including most of what you mention,
but that isn't all (by a d**n long sight!) that the government does
with my money.

And "theft" is definitely the word for it.  If I steal food to save my
(hypothetical) children from starvation, when I am unable to do so in
any other way, the entirely-adequate justification doesn't make the
act of theft any less an act of theft.  When the government steals my
money to support its activities, it's still theft.  My approval of some
of the activities does not change that.  Nor does my inability to think
of a better way of financing some of them.  Necessity should not be
confused with morality.

> You may disagree with
> some of the expenditures made by the system, and you have the right
> to vote and to work within the political system to make changes if
> you feel strongly enough about it.

To put this in another context:  "well, if you American colonists have
grievances, you have every right to petition the King to do something
about them".  Right, except there's no useful result.  The reason I do
not engage in such activity is that the odds approach 0 that my actions
would have any significant effect.  I have spoken before about the
illusion of participation and control that a democracy provides to its
citizens.

> Theft? Only if you feel that you really earned every dollar you're
> paid.

My employers certainly think I do, or they would pay me less.

> Didn't you get some help from government in the form of
> education? In the form of government support to the university
> which pays your salary to support its research? Put yourself on
> a desert island, with no taxes, and you wouldn't have your job.

See above comments on the justifiability of *some* government activities,
and on my inability to think of a better way to finance them.  This does
not make the government's existing practices any less reprehensible.  "I
couldn't think of any way to feed my kids except by stealing the food."

> If you really think it's theft, you have two ways of avoiding
> paying taxes: (1) don't work, or (2) move to the Bahamas.

Item (1) has less-desirable side effects, unfortunately.  Depriving myself
of money to make sure the government doesn't take any of it is cutting off
my nose to spite my face.  And item (2) would be worth considering, except
that it's probably worse in the Bahamas than here.
-- 
				Henry Spencer @ U of Toronto Zoology
				{allegra,ihnp4,linus,decvax}!utzoo!henry