To liberals, the purpose of taxes is not to collect revenue, but to redistribute income. Under such schemes, income is not redistributed to the needy per se, but rather to members of the coalition of political supporters. There is never the intent of helping people in the sense that non-politicians think of “people”, i.e. individuals and families.
The illusion of popular support must be managed carefully- the coalition member groups mobilize under a variety of banners that conjure mental images of ordinary citizens speaking out. But the connections between all the groups shouldn’t be too blatant- it must be a “united front” rather than a “popular front”. Popular support is a convenient cover for running a legal racket enforced by th epolice power of the state. When popular support erodes, the motivations behind the taxation scheme become apparent.
Yes, indeed. I heard those very words out of Jesse Jackson's own son who sits in the US House of Rep. on a Chicago-area radio show. I couldn't believe my ears - that he would say it right out loud.