Taxes and Democracy

The Tea Party movement is predicated on the premise that, as their name indicates (Taxed Enough Already) the level of taxation in 2010 America is onerous and a major cause of our current economic woes.

They seem to forget that taxes were much higher even under the Reagan administration, and that during America's Golden Age (the 50s and 60s) taxes were much, much higher.

But beyond that, I wanted to explore the very idea of taxation.  To this end I quote a comment from my friend Ken Christian, which is the best explanation on this topic I have come across:

""Taxes are what we pay for a civilized society." — Former Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes


Long ago, we accepted that education was not only to be paid for by all, but was mandatory; part of being an advanced, civilized society. Why are we so unwilling to accept that basic health care is also a fundamental part of a civilized society?

Food, clothing, and shelter are fully as much a part of civilized society (and even more basic, obviously) as police protection, national defense, fire protection, maintenance of roads, and all the other elements of life that we take for granted. They aren't politicized so much these days, but healthcare is, mostly because we realized that it had become so expensive, and thereby delivered in such an inequitable way. And for some, that seems to be the rub: they just don't want to admit that some things - the really big, really important (and yes, really expensive) things - will only be done by government, with its capabilities for collecting and dispensing funds. If they don't do it, who will? Wal-Mart? Lockheed? Microsoft? Good luck with that.

In terms of how government manages and monitors the big, important endeavors...well, the politicians have done us all a disservice by wasting our tax dollars, dispensing them as pork-barrel projects in return for campaign donations, and making other nefarious use of the money. Not surprisingly, people have loudly protested, and tax cutting became "the new black".

Just because taxes are lowered, however, does not mean that the remaining tax dollars are being used judiciously. And just because a lot of tax money has been wasted does not mean that the need for public, tax-funded endeavors has disappeared. On the contrary, we need them now more than ever, and folks, it's up to us to be sure that those things are discussed, funded, and managed correctly. Blindly voting for tax cuts and then declaring a victory accomplishes nothing. Nor is anything accomplished by ignoring how tax dollars are used.

(For others - primarily those who still long for the Gilded Age - it's just simple greed. They've got their money, they want to keep it, and society be damned. They will always be with us.)

You can't hold a bake sale every time society needs something. So our conversation needs to change. We must decide, with a simple majority, what the priorities are; and then levy taxes to pay for those priorities. You can't hold a bake sale every time society needs something.

So I'm all for public-funded health care. It's our money, and our children's money, and we need to make sure it's used correctly. But if we want civilization, we all must pitch in. Think about this when you're doing your tax return. And hold your government accountable for it.

Ken Christian - September 23 at 12:50pm"