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Subject: 
Re: Taxes from Lego auctions?
Newsgroups: 
lugnet.off-topic.debate
Date: 
Fri, 17 Dec 1999 18:21:41 GMT
Viewed: 
489 times
  
In lugnet.off-topic.debate, Christopher L. Weeks writes:
"We live in a great country that affords us many freedoms, maybe not as
much as it used to, and maybe not as much as it should, but it would not be
worth losing your freedom over a few bucks, and tax evasion is serious
business.

Am I right in taking what you are saying as: "technically, you may have
the right to evade taxes, but you'll get in trouble and it's really much
easier if you just go with the flow.  After all, the government slowly
stripping away freedoms isn't worth risking going to jail and losing all
your freedoms." ?

I might disagree, if so.

I think that's quite a bit more extremest than the original statement, but in
essense, yes. If it came down to you paying $3.50 or being put in jail for 5 to
10 years, I'd hope you'd pay the $3.50, because it really ISN'T worth the
trouble of trying to avoid it (at least not to me). When does it cross the line
into worthwhile? Well, we'll all have to be the judges of that independantly.
Is it like going with the flow and killing Jews just to go with the flow (as
you suggest later in your message)? Well, if losing $3.50 is worth as much to
you as a human life, maybe. And if you want to protest, go ahead. But I don't
expect you to get very far. I think most people feel that yes, they "should"
pay taxes, and that yes, they really do "owe" it to their country, even if they
don't like doing it, or think it should be less money.

Actually, I'm a little confused-- are you saying that you should want to NOT
pay taxes, or that you should want to for other reasons? I don't really
understand how you disagree....

If
you make money off of your dealings of buying and selling on the internet,
under our current system you owe taxes on your profits(income) from these

I wouldn't call it owe...that somehow implies that it's a debt to which
I'd agreed.  I'd say that under our current system, some thugs with
really big guns will come by and take a cut as part of their protection
racket.

Ahhh... so it sounds now like you think people should want NOT to pay taxes...
although I could be mistaken. But at least you sound like you're putting some
rather extreme negative connitations on the government.

activities, and it behooves you to get qualified tax advice from a tax
professional to aid you with your decision."

Yes.  Absolutely.  I have read that if you make over about $80K you can
cut your federal income tax by $1 for every (up to a point) $1 you are
willing to spend on lawyers and CPAs.  As far as I'm concerned I would
much rather pay them than support the government.  At least most CPAs
are actively engaged in murder.

Personally, nope. I feel a larger obligation to the government than to lawyers
and CPA's. Primarily because the nature of their actions is to screw one party
over for another party's benefit, and get paid for it, thus screwing over the
benefiting party. Personally, I find that horribly immoral. And as far as what
the government does with my money, I think the majority of it at least gets
spent well. There are terrible problems with the system, and there are things
the government spends money on (like some of the rather crazy art endowments
they have) that I object to tremendously, but then again, we also live in a
democracy. If you can convince a large majority of something, you can affect
how people vote, and inderectly affect how the nation is run. If you can't
convince a large majority of people of something, well... maybe your argument
isn't that great to start with. And if you're still unsatisfied, run for office
if you feel so strongly. What I'm absoloutly sick and tired of though, are
whiners and complainers. In my own opinion, your right to complain is directly
proportional to how much you've tried to change things for the better. Maybe
you've tried a lot, and deserve to complain, but then again, I don't really
know. But I know that not that many people HAVE tried to change things, and I
don't want this to blossom into a complaining thread.

Will Middelaer

(Please, no posts about how income taxes are illegal because the 16th
amendment was never ratified or any of that stuff.  We live within a system
that isn't so bad compared with the rest of the world, so just relax.)

What the hell is that.  Why not?  What do you care if I post about that?
Oh, I see.  So just because it "isn't so bad" we should fully support
it?  Well every time I pay income taxes (and I do because I don't want
to be killed) I feel guilty because I know that I am paying people to go
kill other people and that's just [explitive snipped].  And there's no damn
thing I can do about it.  And I'll cling to any reasonable rationalle that I
can for why I shouldn't have to pay those taxes because I know that what I'm
doing is wrong.  I'm just shutting up and not making waves because it's
more comfortable.  Just like most Germans were doing sixty years ago.

(Since I've only alluded to it does that mean I've lost, or not?)

Chris

Well, I think the purpose was not to avoid the topic because of his lack of
argument, but that it gets things way off topic really fast. And personally, I
agree... I don't like complaining fests. I think all in all maybe you're
reading a bit too much into the message. And I certainly don't think there was
a need for profanity. Despite the fact that you may not have "agreed" to the
laws of your nation, you HAVE agreed to the laws of LUGNET. Please respect
them.

DaveE



Message has 1 Reply:
  Re: Taxes from Lego auctions?
 
David Eaton wrote in message ... (...) not be (...) in (...) 5 to (...) line (...) independantly. (...) (as (...) to (...) don't (...) "should" (...) they (...) While I agree to a point with you, I also agree to a point with Chris. I don't think (...) (25 years ago, 21-Dec-99, to lugnet.off-topic.debate)

Message is in Reply To:
  Re: Taxes from Lego auctions?
 
(...) Am I right in taking what you are saying as: "technically, you may have the right to evade taxes, but you'll get in trouble and it's really much easier if you just go with the flow. After all, the government slowly stripping away freedoms (...) (25 years ago, 17-Dec-99, to lugnet.off-topic.debate)

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