Parts of this country are just stark raving mad.
The great thinkers on Liberty would not be surprised at this at all. Our Founders knew the type of people attracted to government -- mostly vile. That's why they spent much thought on designing a system of checks and balances and making the Federal government as weak as possible.
You are correct, stark raving mad, but I would add evil. At the local, state, and Federal level, there are a good many workers who wake up each day and relish making the taxpayer's lives miserable.
At their core, they are very sadistic, evil human beings -- I would suggest no less evil than the NAZI guard camp workers.
Given enough power, vast numbers of government workers would not hesitate to utterly destroy the lives of fellow citizens.
To Liberty loving, Constitutional loving Americans they are indeed just stark raving mad.