johnpalmer

Taxation Ain’t Theft FAQ

Q: Is taxation theft?
A: No.

Q: NOW WAIT A MINUTE, something libertarian something…
A: LALALALALA I CAN’T HEAR YOU I HOPE YOU’RE NOT SPEAKING

Q: …but Ayn Rand….
A: LALALALALALALALALA GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!!!

Q: Okay, I think taxation could be seen as theft, and I feel you’re blithely dismissing my concerns.
A: That’s better, questions, I like answering them, speeches, I avoid them. No, what taxation is, is the natural basis of a monetary unit. In the US, you need dollars, and only dollars, when you pay taxes. If the US government didn’t collect taxes, there’d be no natural market for dollars, and a dollar wouldn’t necessarily mean much. Since some people will need dollars to pay taxes, they will always be willing to sell for dollars. Viewed this way, then, the goal of taxation is to help “form a more perfect union, establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and, secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity.” Taxes going out should result in those other goals being met – payment in taxes gives you good government. Republicans say “good” government is a myth; they tell other lies, too.

Q: still, doesn’t the government demand that you pay taxes, eventually using guns to drag you to court to defend yourself for tax evasion?
A: Generally, until you’re buying and selling in dollars, you’re not doing much that’s taxable. There are property taxes, but, protection of property takes money! There’s no free lunch. You could homestead, and pay only property taxes, and live off the land, and minimize your taxation. Or you could live like almost everyone else, and engage in economic activity, which means some portion of the money you come across will be taxed. But remember, your taxpaying allows you to make demands for services, including “tax relief.” If you want a real libertarian-land, maybe Musk can make an orbital libertarian colony where you conduct business in bitcoin, and then, with no dollars going through your hands, you won’t be tagged for taxes. It’s only if you’re going to play the game, that you do need to ante up. Oh, better hope Musk doesn’t raise your rent in Libertarian-land….

Q: Don’t some liberals say a high sales tax picks the pocket of the working class person? That’s saying it’s theft!!! Mwah hah hah, I rub my hands in glee!!!
A: Dude, you look like you’re checking for hand lotion after a yank session. Okay, yes, taxes that are regressive are bad for the poor, and often times, they do “pick the pocket of Peter to pay Paul,” but that’s an argument about how to tax, not an argument that taxes are inherently unfair or “theft.” If everyone needs (guess) $30,000 in taxable goods and services to have a happy, comfortable life, then a worker making just over $30k is sacrificing to pay the tax, uncomfortable, because of taxes, you see? While a worker making $300k is only “really” forced to pay sales taxes on 10% of their income. That said: rich people should be thought of as high rollers in the casino, while you’re enjoying the free entertainment and buffet. People who think it’s fun to put $10k on one roll of the dice mean you get free drinks, of reasonable quality, while playing the dollar tables; businesspeople who put a lot of capital on the line, and succeed, should rake in money by the boatload, but their taxes should also mean we get good healthcare, childcare (most importantly, schools), protection from criminals (including those who unjustly have a badge!), and a belief that there’s a social safety net, so, worst case, maybe you need to live in the cheap part of town, and eat ramen, while you get back on your feet.

Q: If we cautiously posit that maybe society should provide things like “healthcare,” why should the rich be punished with higher tax rates? Isn’t that class warfare?
A: American workers are the most productive – that is, they earn the most money, for their employers, per hour – in the world, period. The money from that productivity has to go somewhere. If an undeserved amount goes to the rich, then perhaps they should be taxed, to reduce that injustice, but, so long as more earned income = more after tax income, one can’t call it “punishment.” Not honestly.

Q: I guess there’s no point in asking, but… aren’t wealth taxes different?
A: Wealth taxes are the same as property taxes, and if you have a billion dollars in USA stocks, you do have an interest in the USA doing nominally well. Further, just cash, invested in stocks, can generally earn a huge amount of money; a tax on wealth, that is significantly less than expected growth,will only slow growth of wealth, but wealth would still grow. If someone had a huge family farm that pushed them into wealth tax territory, there’d be financial services firms who’d structure a way to keep tax payments from touching the farm. And if not, if someone has to sell a few acres from a farm that’s valued at tens of millions of dollars, it’s sad, but not as bad as parents needing to sell blood to get school supplies.