It's Not Charity If It's Forced

Reading a post on a blog that I subscribe to today...they mention that they are getting a refund check from their taxes this year. They also mention that they are one of those who pay fewer taxes and get more back in return. A pretty good gig if you can get it.

Anyway, he thanks people who DO pay taxes for the "charity" they've given. This line, more than anything else in his entire post, grabbed me and made me see red.

"If your income level is such that you do not qualify for a tax refund, I want to thank you for the donation that you have given the rest of us."

WHAT!?!?!

My taxes are not given as a DONATION for charity. They are forcibly removed from my earnings, often for purposes other than my choosing. I support the military. I want my taxes used for roads, fire/police, and community things like national parks. I do NOT want my hard earned money given to people who haven't earned their own

[By the way...Stew is actually very gracious about this. He totally realizes that his refund is technically not money he earned in any way. I get that. He is taking advantage of the way the system is set up and I don't blame him for that...I would too. I just think the system is broken.]

Our family does not make a ton of money (and are poised to make much less this year) yet we have owed money the last two years because we would rather keep our money throughout the year rather than loan it to the government interest free and get a "refund".

Last year we owed about $400 or so. Not a huge amount but still painful. And to know that there are people paying no income taxes getting "refunds" (aka welfare in the form of a tax refund) really chaps my hide.

I'd really like to see some sort of flat tax or at least a system where EVERYONE has a stake in the system. If everyone had to write a check for their taxes, instead of having it withheld from their paycheck, I think people would pay a LOT more attention to what our government spends and where. Maybe more people would realize how stupid it is for the federal government to fund things like the National Endowment for the Arts. Or public schools. Or the Post Office. Privatize them all. If you love the NEA so much, donate to them. Let the USPS compete for business. And let local communities keep their tax dollars and invest them in their schools...where locals know the issues and needs.

Instead our paychecks are raided and our tax dollars are allocated based on what some politician in a far away land deems worthy ... or where they think they can get the most political bang for OUR buck.