The Case for a War Tax — on Gas

Time Magazine ^ | April 19, 2004 | Andrew Sullivan

[Paul C. Jesup]

How about a War Tax on the PRESS/MEDIA!! How about $200 dollars for every article a reporter publishes.

[Binghamton_native]

I'm not in favor of this tax, but sometimes I think that we that support our goals in Iraq should stop griping so much about the price of gasoline, and consider the price our part of the sacrifice to support what our brave troops are doing.

[rageaholic]

Yep, everybody wants the short term high of seeing American tanks roll through Bagdad, but nobody wants to pay for it. Makes no difference who gets elected, with Bush you'll all be paying for it in the future, with Kerry, you'll all be paying for it tomorrow. Like Powell said, "we broke it, we bought it." Whatever.

[upchuck]

If I rember correctly, the telephone tax was to pay for the Spanish American War, and Congress finally did repeal that one a couple years ago: about a century after the war the tax was supposed to pay for was over. So if we go by that example, we could very well be paying the proposed increased gas tax in the 22nd century.

Thanks for the history lesson. And you make a very valid point. Thank goodness I'll be gone long before then :)

[Glenn]

Why don't we cut spending, Andy? Let's make it a national goal to put 1 million government workers on the street by the end of the year.

[tahiti]

Mr. Sullivan states: "...help wean Americans off the oil that requires the U.S. to be so intimately involved in that wonderful cesspool of rival hatreds, the Middle East."

Rageaholic states: "Actually this is a tax I wouldn't mind paying. Knowing that a few pennies go to some Arabs every time I tank up pisses me off."

We can accomplish the goal of cutting off a revenue source to the Middle East without raising gas taxes one penny.

Drill for oil in Alaska to replace the same amount of oil we currently purchase from the Arabs. It is that simple.

[the gillman@blacklagoon.com]

How about just disband 90% of federal, state and local governments. Then there would be no need for taxes.

[hripka]

Comments requested on this idea:

How about a $10 tax per barrel of imported oil?

That sure would spur American production.

[rageaholic]

as long as every penny that goes to an arab oil sheik is matched or exceeded by funds that go to kill moslem fundamentalists, I'd be for it.

I have a fuel efficient car, but still it pains me to tank up, knowing that some of the money will end up in Saudi, an enemy state. This is an intolerable situation, seems most people just want to ignore it.