Not Conservatives but Libertarians (Who Don't Believe in Paying Tax)

In an earlier blog posting, I talked about conservatives who believe that they should not have to pay any taxes. I confess to an error: people who believe that should be called libertarians. I am going to try to be fair in presenting their political philosophy as regards taxation.

The argument goes like this: A person owns his labor, because it is a part of his person, and he owns his person.

Therefore he owns the fruits of his labor, that is, his wealth. And they believe that a man's right of possession of his wealth is so absolute that the government does not have the right to confiscate it.

First of all, the US Constitution says that the government shall not seize a man's property without due process of law--and the qualification, in italics, is very important.

And, as far back in human history as the ancient Egyptians, rulers and governments of every type have levied taxes. In the early days of the United States, a Supreme Court decision established the right of the government to assess taxes to pay for high schools. Also for a very long time, there have been those who resisted this or that particular tax. Look at the various "tax rebellions" in American history, as an example.

However, I would like to ask the folks who argue against taxes how they expect the fire department to be paid for, or the police, or the army, or the building of roads.

I saw a very interesting program on TV. It seems that a Harvard law professor had been speaking before a very large audience of students on various political philosophies, including Libertarianism in, presumably, a modern incarnation. He then asked three students who identified as libertarians to come forward and deal with a few questions.

One of the questions was, Should a man be prosecuted for stealing a loaf of bread to feed his starving family? At least one of the students said Yes, maintaining that the man's theft violated another man's property rights, so he should be punished. Apparently, to this man, the right of property is so absolute that there can be no mitigating circumstances. I can't help but be reminded of 19th-century (or maybe 18th-century) England, where the thief in question would definitely have gone to prison. Personally, I have to say, "That is not a nice young man. He has no humanity."

Copyright © 2011 by Richard