-Caveat Lector- from: http://www.zolatimes.com/V3.43/pageone.html Click Here: <A HREF="http://www.zolatimes.com/V3.43/pageone.html">Laissez Faire City Times - Volume 3 Issue 43</A> ----- November 8, 1999 - Volume 3, Issue 43 Editor & Chief: Emile Zola ----- A Ride in the IRS Taxi by Sunni Maravillosa As if the public school system isn't proof enough that the United States federal government officials are working hard to indoctrinate young people with their collectivist mindset, the Internal Revenue Service has really provided the last straw. It's a beauty, too—a more blatant propaganda than one usually finds. The IRS has developed an "online interactive web site", Tax i (http://www.irs.gov/taxi/), that is targeted at teens. Slickly presented, with eye- catching graphics and the latest slang, the goal of the site seems to be to make taxes cool. Taxi works very hard at that goal, with examples that are intended to appeal to teens, and an informal, conversational style that belies the seriousness of the IRS message: You vill pay zese taxes, und you vill like it! While browsing it, I wondered to what degree teenagers—an already naturally suspicious group—will accept the slanted presentation. I remember being particularly cautious as a teen when any adult tried to be cool when talking to me; it was a signal that they wanted something. My intuition is that teens who visit this site will react similarly, because Taxi has the same two strikes against it: it is written by adults who want younger people to buy their message; and it practically screams, "I'm cool!" in a pathetic way. Taxi is an informative web site. It is also fairly comprehensive, addressing different levels of taxes and what they are used for, as well as progressive, regressive, and proportional taxation. There's even a page that offers easy to understand definitions of many tax-related terms. Sprinkled throughout are historical facts that lend an air of credibility and solidity to the site. More interesting to me, however, is the unintentional bits of information it communicates. One need not be an advocate of freedom to wonder why the IRS is trying to steer one's thoughts so carefully around certain issues and to specific conclusions. In presenting the federal government's role in taxation, for example, Taxi states that the first states were sovereign territories that "chose to give up some power to the Federal Government for the collective good." This contradicts the traditional historical interpretation that the states each saw that their self-interest lay in pooling their resources for certain tasks, such as defense, and that they were rightly suspicious about a strong federal government. By choosing to cast history in that context, however, it becomes easier to talk about government's "services" providing for the common good today; accepting this idea is crucial for accepting the state in its present leeching form. The discussion of the federal government also presents an interesting bit on its "responsibilities"; the list given includes helping the disabled and elderly and paying for FBI agents, medical research, and air traffic controllers. Not surprisingly, there's no mention of how these responsibilities came into the purview of the feds, no hint that it could be otherwise, and no mention that tasks that the federal government is not specifically authorized to do by the US Constitution are prohibited to it. Yet, it's difficult to think that an alert mind that comes across that list wouldn't recognize its breadth and wonder why it's the government's responsibility to do those things. Paying One's "Fair Share" In discussing the income tax the web site takes on a stronger tone, stating in regards to personal earnings on at least one page that "not all that money belongs to you." But rather than stating that it "belongs" to someone else—a claim that the IRS knows it cannot support—it falls back on the argument that the taxes are needed to pay for government services. Then, after presenting an analogy comparing government services to pizza toppings (that's one pizza guaranteed to make many people ill), Taxi hits teens where they tend to be sensitive: what other people might think about them if they don't pay their "fair share" of taxes. However, in other places, Taxi speaks approvingly of shifting taxes to other people. This disparity comes up often enough to leave most visitors wondering which is better—paying one's "share" or trying to shove it off to someone else. Voluntary compliance receives a lot of attention on the Taxi site, not surprisingly. In a rare bit of honesty, the site admits that the IRS relies heavily on citizens to police themselves. Yet not too far above this definition, "taxes" are defined as "required payments of money to the government." Again, the difference between approaches should be sufficient to set many visitors to wondering why the IRS leaves compliance a voluntary choice when tax payments are required. Other interesting items include the definition of "benefits received", which tries very hard to obscure the fact that many people pay taxes on government aid— which originates from taxes paid. And the entry on social security is so laughably vague that it alone is sufficient to call into question the veracity of the rest of the information the site presents. Given the attention the topic regularly receives in the media, one might think that Taxi would delve into the issues at least a little, in an attempt to counter the projections of failure that abound. Instead, social security is airily defined as "America's government-run retirement plan", and the site reassuringly croons: "One day… you'll get the money back." That one entry is emblematic of the entire Taxi web site: it's a shallow treatment of an important topic that many teens are as concerned about as their parents. In trying to be persuasive and hip, the Taxi site designers chose to offer smoke and mirrors instead of substance, perhaps thinking that their intended audience wouldn't notice. Some probably won't, but my experience with younger Americans leads me to suspect that most will notice, and will be offended by the bait and switch. Those of us who cherish liberty and want to advance it for ourselves as well as future generations can learn important lessons from the Taxi site. First, I interpret the existence of this site as evidence that pro-freedom ideas are having an impact among younger Americans, and that has the feds worried. We cannot leave it to chance that these individuals, full of promise and energy, will find information on freedom on their own. The state knows what's at stake here; that's why they are so willing to invest energy into sites like Taxi. Although our side doesn't have the resources available that the state does, we also don't face many of the same challenges. Rather than needing to gloss over certain facts and avoid obvious discrepancies, the value of liberty is straightforward to explain. A parody of the Taxi site would be an obvious way to highlight the differences between a coercive system and a free one. Desperate to perpetuate their herd of willing sheep, the IRS is using the same approach that many parents use, with the same limited success—talking at younger people, instead of to them. Yes, style does matter to them, but substance matters more. We forget—or overlook—that at our peril. Without needing to sidestep, backtrack, and redefine terms in order to try to persuade a younger audience, a libertarian message can offer comparatively much more substance than the state's message, and still do so in an entertaining way. The freedom philosophy advances freedom for everyone; by showing that its advocates take younger Americans seriously, our success in sharing ideas becomes that much closer. There are many battles being waged in this war of ideas—Second Amendment, states' rights, the War on (Some) Drugs being only a few examples—yet those who want freedom cannot afford to ignore this front. It may be that our last, best hope for liberty rests not with us, but with future generations. Are we willing to cede them to the state so easily? ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Sunni Maravillosa is a psychologist and web mistress for the Liberty Round Table (URL http://home.lrt.org/ ). -30- from The Laissez Faire City Times, Vol 3, No 43, November 8, 1999 ----- Published by Laissez Faire City Netcasting Group, Inc. Copyright 1998 - Trademark Registered with LFC Public Registrar All Rights Reserved ----- Aloha, He'Ping, Om, Shalom, Salaam. Em Hotep, Peace Be, Omnia Bona Bonis, All My Relations. Adieu, Adios, Aloha. Amen. Roads End DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
