> ...but don't obscure the fact that someone is taking your money, all the time, without giving you a choice in the matter.
I've always been curious about this point of view. While it is true that you are paying money in taxes throughout your life, it is also true that at the same time you are receiving the benefits, to some degree, of that taxation in the form of public infrastructure and spending. How you experience life from your moment of birth depends on how those in the past have spent and dealt with issues like taxation and public spending and how you take advantage of those things, knowingly or not.
If you could choose to not pay some or all of the taxes you pay now, would you? Would you ever spend that extra income to benefit people who you will never meet or interact with? Would you ever spend that extra income to benefit people you actively disagree with or find repulsive?
I didn't say we shouldn't pay taxes, or that there aren't benefits of having the government those taxes pay for.
But nobody gets a say in the matter. And everybody should be aware of this most basic function of the government.
I'm basically advocating taxpayer awareness, and government oversight. I'm not a member of the tea party and I don't want to get rid of all taxes. I feel that some friction is welcome when paying taxes, because otherwise people will be less aware they exist, and the government will have an easier time raising them.
I've always been curious about this point of view. While it is true that you are paying money in taxes throughout your life, it is also true that at the same time you are receiving the benefits, to some degree, of that taxation in the form of public infrastructure and spending. How you experience life from your moment of birth depends on how those in the past have spent and dealt with issues like taxation and public spending and how you take advantage of those things, knowingly or not.
If you could choose to not pay some or all of the taxes you pay now, would you? Would you ever spend that extra income to benefit people who you will never meet or interact with? Would you ever spend that extra income to benefit people you actively disagree with or find repulsive?