On Wed, Jan 26, 2005 at 10:06:07AM -0600, Mia McDavid <mia_mcdavid at comcast.net> wrote: > Schools, roads, hospitals, libraries, sometimes sports arenas, police, > firefighters, social programs, our armed services--these are not the > toys of assorted officials. I get sick and tired of people whingeing > about their taxes because "they earned it, it's their money." Crap. If > you don't want a government at all, go live in Montana and be a > survivalist and stop using the things government, that is, We the > People, that is, your fellow-citizens, gives us. Well, I for one get tired of being "asked" for contributions to schools, hospitals, libraries, sports arenas, fire insurance, and "the poor" at gunpoint. Yes, gunpoint. And moving to Montana will not spare me from the federal taxes that go to pay for all of those things. Understand this: the fact that I live in society means that I must *pay* my taxes, but it does *not* require that I, or anyone else, do so without complaint. Complaints about unjust laws and unnecessary tax burdens are a vital and necessary part of politics. To deprive someone of their right to complain about such abuses is to deprive them of their political voice. The last time the American people got fed up with being taxed, we held a tea party to discuss the matter. Taxes are far heavier today than they were at that time. You do not have to listen to people who feel they are being taxed too heavily, but it might be a good idea. I, however, do not have to listen to you complain about other people's complaints. -- Matthew Hunter (matthew at infodancer.org) Public Key: http://matthew.infodancer.org/public_key.txt Homepage: http://matthew.infodancer.org/index.jsp Politics: http://www.triggerfinger.org/weblog/index.jsp