Socialism through Taxation

By Clint Lacy

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A recent AP poll found that 2/3’s of Americans is wary of additional tax cuts. Traditionally it is the Democrats who oppose tax cuts, but this time they have help. The AP poll also found that, “more than half of Republicans said it would be better to hold off on tax cuts to avoid deeper deficits”. Republicans? I thought that the Republicans were the party of less taxation and less government?

The recent AP poll exposes a myth, but judging by the results I’m confident that Americans will not be able to recognize what the myth is. A keen eye will reveal the myth in one key sentence. “More than half of Republicans said it would be better to hold off on tax cuts to avoid deeper deficits” This sentence shows us that the Republican party is not the party of less government and less taxes. It also reveals that there is very little difference between the two parties. Both parties in reality want very little to do with the business of cutting taxes and reducing government.

For those who are naive enough to believe that “holding off” on tax cuts will prevent new tax increases just wait until I tell you what the state of Oregon has up it’s sleeve. AP news service is also reporting that a “Road User Fee Task Force set up by the 2001 Legislature plans to ask the coming 2003 session to authorize testing the feasibility of a vehicle-mileage tax”

Just what is a vehicle mileage tax and how would it be implemented? The vehicle mileage tax that is being considered by the state of Oregon would tax Oregon’s drivers by the amount of miles they drive in their car. This would be done with the use of satellite technology. AP also reported that the state’s current gas tax would not be abolished if the vehicle mileage tax were implemented.

People do not understand that once government implements a tax, it is never temporary and it will never go away. Politicians in Washington, D.C. and in state governments come up with elaborate grand plans to “over- haul” the tax system by use of tax credits and by shifting the burden of who pays the most taxes. If the government was really serious about reforming the tax codes they would abolish the income tax all together and replace it with either a flat tax or retail sales tax. Isn’t it ironic that our former communist adversary Russia has now implemented a flat tax system and we haven’t?

Recent news articles tell the story of how “Big Tobacco” settlement money that was supposed to be used by the states to offset healthcare cost for those with tobacco related illnesses, have spent the majority of that money to plug up holes in state budgets. Recently in my home state of Missouri, (which received tobacco settlement money) a tax increase was proposed on cigarettes to, you guessed it, offset the healthcare costs of tobacco related illnesses. The cigarette tax failed. Right along with the proposed fuel tax increase to help maintain the roads here. Never mind the fact that in 1992 Missourians approved a fuel tax increase to fund major road construction and repair, which was never accomplished due to insufficient funding.

When government offers a tax cut it is never permanent. When government proposes a tax increase it is never temporary. When a tax increase is levied, it is a proven fact the money will not go where it is supposed to. The best thing that could happen to this country right now is the abolition of the income tax all together. The elimination of the income tax would stimulate the economy and reduce the size of government.

In a time when Americans feel threatened by possible terrorist attacks and a looming war, much of our country feels secure with a bigger and growing government. What many of my fellow citizens don’t realize is that security will not be the result of this ideology, socialism will.

-Clint E. Lacy