Posted on 04/15/2002 4:34:52 AM PDT by Fintan
|
It's tax day. So let's consider some basic facts. The wealthiest 1 percent of the taxpayers pay 34 percent of all federal income taxes. The top 50 percent pay 96 percent of the total bill. This means that the least wealthy 50 percent pay almost nothing. In short, the income tax system soaks the rich. In the name of justice, the President, Congress and the American public should be demanding a tax cut that lowers the tax bill of the wealthy.
But the opponents of tax cuts do not want justice. They want redistribution of wealth. They want to confiscate the income earned by the wealthy and give it to people who have not earned it. They want the rich - which includes the most productive people in society - to be the servants of the poor.
The moral principle used to justify income redistribution is altruism. Altruism does not mean generosity or benevolent concern for the less fortunate. Altruism means: other-ism. It is the doctrine that it is your moral duty to live for others and to sacrifice your life, property and well-being for theirs. It is the code of self-sacrifice. Under altruism, the productive are the ones who must give and the nonproductive are those who receive. The inability or unwillingness of the nonproductive to create wealth gives them a moral claim upon those who do.
The tax code enforces altruism through coercion. Earning money through voluntary trade is replaced by getting money by force in order to achieve the altruistic goal the government desires. But when the property of some people is seized and given to others, it is an injustice. The doctrine of altruism induces (and is meant to induce) guilt. It makes the successful feel that they have no right to their achievements. The goal of altruism is to disarm the producers morally so that they will not defend their right to their lives and property. Thus the rich often support higher taxes for themselves. Remember in recent years, just as one example, billionaires Bill Gates and Warren Buffett attacking a repeal of the estate tax. Most Americans would be shocked to learn that altruism is the moral code that underlies Marxism (and thus communism). Marx's credo was: "From each according to his ability; to each according to his need." Humans have no right to exist for themselves in this view; they are servants of the state, to be disposed of as the state sees fit. No, we have not gone all the way down that road yet, though the progressive income tax has been a step in that direction.
Altruism is the opposite of Americanism. Americanism means you have the inalienable right "to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness," which includes property rights. It means that your life and property belong to you, not to the state or to society. It means that the government's proper job is to protect, not to violate, rights. Acting in one's own self-interest (while respecting the rights of others) is fully moral - it is the fundamental requirement of a successful and happy life. It means that you are not an object of sacrifice but a sovereign being. It means that your property belongs to you. It means that every individual, whether rich or poor, has the same rights. Self-reliance, not self-sacrifice, is the American ideal.
On tax day, support tax cuts by promoting the idea of a truly just society: where each man keeps what he earns and has no claim upon the life and property of others.
Edwin A. Locke, Dean's professor emeritus of leadership and motivation at the University of Maryland at College Park, is a senior writer for the Ayn Rand Institute (http://www.aynrand.org). |
maybe we can figure it out by hypothesizing who would lose the most if the society wasn't there. I don't think it breaks down into rich poor that easily. For example, a derivative trader making $5 million would lose alot more than a brain surgeon making $5 million. The former's activity is unproductive; the latter's is not. Therefore tax so that the derivative trader's business suffers more than the heart surgeon.
The great and powerful OZ has spoken.
Are you a communist?
It's kind of strange that people today get to say what a Republican is. The people of Lincoln's time were the first Republicans, you would think they would get to define it. Maybe the people of today's party are the RINOs?
I won't defend Lincoln, because he is not generally considered a conservative.
That is why we weren't talking about conservatives. We were talking about Republicans.
A conservative is not only a strict constructionist regarding the constitution, but also a defender of local government over central government, and a defender of free enterprise and federalism.
You must feel lonely in that party since you seem to be one of the very few who thinks this is what a Republican is. Certainly very few elected Republicans.
BTW, correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought that Woodrow Wilson was the administration that pushed the 16th amendment.
You were correct, and so was I.
Give the man a cigar!
None of it. I suggest you re-read the post that gave you the idea that I felt otherwise.
BTW, the inconsistent position you expressed above is nonsensical. (i.e., you don't try to hide any income from the government even though you believe income taxes are theft.)
Are you one of those people whose ideas are so bankrupt that you allege/imply that others are communists to avoid intellectual discourse?
Problem? Nah, as long as they don't violate my rights they are no problem to me. I disagree with them, but I would advocate nothing except friendly persuasion to have them see things my way.
You can't be serious!! A difference of opinion is full justification for a complete Congressional audit and a slew of new laws...
Sheesh! And you call yourself an American?! Phooey! ;^)
Only to someone who didn't understand the explanation that was given to them. I explained it so anyone could understand it, perhaps if you reread it a few dozen times. Want the post number?
Are you one of those people whose ideas are so bankrupt that you allege/imply that others are communists to avoid intellectual discourse?
You ask questions like this all the time. The old have you stopped beating your wife question. that is why I asked you a perfectly normal question concerning your belief in communist ideals. If you are capable of intellectual discourse I will be happy to engage you as long as you do so in good faith.
Have you stopped fudging on your deductions yet? You did claim the income from that football pool on your slave form didn't you?
"But, but, but...what about our $300 rebate? LOL."
When have the Dimocrats ever given us a Tax rebate? LOL.
I agree that the GOP is better than the Dems (how much better is the question, perhaps). But you must admit they don't exactly work to "roll back government largesse" when given the chance.
The national retail sales tax fixes this quite nicely. If you spend money, you pay tax. Everyone pays the same percentage--totally fair.
Government spending is on the rise. If you want to give tax cuts or even eliminate them on one group the other group(s), maybe your group, will have to make up the difference...It ain't rocket science.
Of course, this would require a simultaneous and massive spending cut.
BINGO!
What about two people whose initials are WJC and HRC?
Joe Gar asked: Do you deny taking payments "off the books" or charging personal items as business expenses?
Yor responsed: yes I deny it.
Then you add: if someone is coming to steal your money, and you hide it in the back yard, is that a problem? Or are people supposed to make sure all their property available to the thieves?
This says, quite directly and nonsensically, that you do not try to hide income from the IRS even though you believe that one should do so because taxes are theft.
You explain this contradiction in a subsequent post by saying that you are afraid to hide your income. Therefore, we can further characterize your pov as gutless and pusillanimous.
Now, tell me, specifically, what I have said that you are unable to distinguish from Communism.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.