C J Campbell wrote:

If John and Peter get together and take money from Paul at gunpoint,
we call

it armed robbery. If two thousand voters get together and decide to take
money from another thousand, we call it taxation.

If, as you seem to imply, the only effect of 'taxation' was the direct
transfer of that
money from the pockets of the one thousand to the pockets of the two
thousand, you
might have an argument. Now, while I'm sure you'll be more than happy to
present
examples of where you think this is the case, I will maintain that this
would be a very
unusual situation.

So, to get to the heart of the matter, people who claim taxes are too
high, but who
refuse to consider what they are getting in return for those taxes, must
fall into one of
two groups. Either you don't wish to accept your responsibility for
living in modern
society (e.g. you want to enjoy the protection afforded by the police
and fire departments,
but you don't want to pay to maintain them), or you disagree with what
your taxes are
being spent on. It it's the latter, then quit hiding behind the tired
old "taxes are too high"
banner. Get to the point, and tell us exactly which programs you think
need to be
eliminated.

Rich Lemert