Chairman’s Report - April 13, 2018

INCOME TAX FILING DAY AND HISTORY

Few people have a real understanding about how taxes have affected past civilizations like Charles Adams.    Charles was a good friend, an international tax lawyer and author of For Good And Evil:The Impact of Taxes on the Course of Civilization—a very readable and informative text on taxation.

In an article entitled Liberty and Taxes: How Compatible Are They? that was published in the winter 1994-95 issue of Formulations on the Free Nation website, Charles looks at how the wrong taxation has gradually eroded liberty and prosperity in the past.

Charles pointed out:

• The Greeks achieved the first major civilized society without despotism, or what we call totalitarianism. The great civilizations of Egypt, Babylon, Persia — even the Greek tyrants — were all developed with an absence of any freedom or liberty. Why, asked the astute Greeks, was civilization incompatible with liberty? The answer seemed obvious. Tyranny was the consequence of the wrong kind of taxes; and liberty was the product of the right kind of taxes. What then are the wrong and right kinds of taxes? Or to put it another way, what kinds of taxes are compatible with a free society?
• First, we have to recognize that taxes are the fuel that makes totalitarianism possible. Big, over-blown, over-regulating, over-policing governments require big taxes. Without large revenues, tyranny cannot live very long. Conversely, as long as governments have big revenues, liberty hasn't a prayer.
• According to the Greeks and Romans, the culprit was direct taxation; i.e., taxes assessed directly upon the individual — head taxes, wealth and property taxes, and production or income taxes. Adopt these kinds of taxes and liberty will suffer; eventually it will be lost. The great Roman lawyer Cicero put the matter in shocking terms:
• "If any government should find itself under the necessity of levying a tax on property, the utmost care has to be devoted to making it clear to the entire population that this simply has to be done because no alternative exists short of complete national collapse."
• The Founders of the United States believed the same thing. Madison said a direct tax will only be instituted during an "extraordinary emergency." James Wilson, whom many believe was the real architect of the Constitution, said the same, using the words "in all cases of an emergency." Another Framer said, "direct taxes should not be used but in cases of absolute necessity." And another wrote, "Nothing but some unforeseen disaster will ever drive the [federal government] to such ineligible expedients." No one ever questioned the wisdom of these remarks.
• There is no particular form of taxation that will guarantee liberty. It is true that direct taxes have a history of destroying liberty.

 

Conclusion

As we confront yet another year where the American people are being subjected to a tax system that only benefits the Swamp and their friends, we see the lessons of history.  We may ask why this system has been allowed to continue when a better alternative exists?

The answer is not easy, but the Swamp and Congress have succeeded in making all of us believe that we would somehow lose something if a simple system like the FAIRtax was adopted to replace the income/payroll tax system.  We are constantly told that the only way people will give money to charity is if they have a tax deduction. The only way to encourage home ownership is to give a tax deduction.

In other words, Congress, the Swamp and their lapdog media all tell us that we are not capable of making rational decisions on our own and should follow their directions.  This is obviously untrue but, as Hitler predicted, if you tell a big lie often enough people will start to believe it.

We need to poke holes in the “big lie” and once it is exposed it will dissipate. The following was written by long-time journalist for the National Review, Joseph Sobran:

“When your child is a little older, you can teach him about our tax system in a way that is easy to grasp. Offer him, say, $10 to mow the lawn. When he has mowed it and asks to be paid, withhold $5 and explain that this is income tax. Give $1 to his younger brother, and tell him that this is "fair". Also, explain that you need the other $4 yourself to cover the administrative costs of dividing the money. When he cries, tell him he is being "selfish" and "greedy". Later in life he will thank you.” 

The truth is the truth.  Remember, if we don't continue to tell the truth and demand a change, then this quote from George Orwell's 1984 may foretell our children's future:

“If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face—forever.”

WHAT CAN EACH OF US DO

Call up the local or D.C. offices of your House Member and two Senators and you can use the following script:

• I am sure that Representative ____ or Senator ____ is in favor of everyone obeying the income tax laws.
• After they assure you that their boss is not in favor of anyone breaking the law, ask if they are aware of the Cebula study showing $9 trillion of evaded income/payroll taxes over the next ten years.
• Since most will say they don’t believe their boss has seen the study, either drop off a copy or get an email address and send a copy to them for their boss.
• Say you are going to call back in a week and ask what the Representative or Senator is going to do to stop this evasion.
• In a week, call back and ask specifically what the Representative or Senator is going to do to enforce the law.
• They probably will say their boss believes that simplifying the income tax will handle the problem.
• Explain that when people evade income taxes, they are also evading the 15.3% payroll/Medicare tax and state income tax.  So it is unlikely that they are going to pay 30% or 40% when they were paying 0% because they have already decided it is okay to cheat.
• Say that the only way to reduce evasion is to increase by tens or hundreds of thousands the number of comprehensive IRS audits done each year.
• Point out that Evaders do not self-identify by putting an “E” on their income tax return.
• 80% of the people likely to be audited are trying to comply, but they will be forced to endure these IRS audits as well.
• Ask if the Member is in favor of this?
• If they say no, then ask again how the Member proposes to stop people breaking the income tax laws.
• Then explain that the way to handle evasion without unleashing the IRS audits is the FAIRtax.  

If you can see your Member or attend a town hall and ask these questions, you can be even more effective.

FAIRTAX POWER RADIO #103

NIGHTMARE ON EVERY STREET

It’s Friday the 13th. Do you know where your tax return is? Specifically, do you know where all your personal, private information is?  Yeah, it’s on that tax return!  Thousands of people fall victim to identity theft every year because of their income tax returns. The FAIRtax Guys tell the gruesome story of the worst possible tax system that could ever be devised and how it ruins thousands of legal tax payers every year.  ID theft via the income tax is a real nightmare.  Just one more reason to pass the FAIRtax and return sanity to federal taxation.  Get the gory details from The FAIRtax Guys.

FILLING OUT A 1040 ON AIR

Last week, The FAIRtax Guys used a popular tax preparation software to demonstrate just how intrusive the income tax is in our daily lives.  Americans have become used to the invasion of privacy brought about by the current income tax.  We should ask ourselves while completing our tax returns “Would we care to share all this personal information with our neighbors? Our own children?”  Probably not.  The FAIRtax Guys remind us that while we are obeying the tax laws, we are surrendering a great deal of private and personal information.  They also remind us that all of this will go away and we will once again have our privacy restored when the FAIRtax becomes law. The Guys give us more reasons to support and promote the FAIRtax. 

ARE YOU HELPING TO SPREAD THE WORD ABOUT THE FAIRTAX?  

Telling your friends and relatives about our free weekly podcasts is a great way to help us garner more support.  It is the American people who must demand REAL tax reform in Congress.  We must inform America about the FAIRtax!  Please help us.

You can listen to FTPR on any platform - Mac or PC, iPhone or Android. And it’s 100% free. 

Listen on Spreaker.com (http://bit.ly/2oesbk7), iTunes (http://apple.co/1Te8VdF) or iHeart Radio (http://bit.ly/2eqEG7y) on your computer or smartphone.  The easiest way to listen to FTPR on your smartphone is by downloading the free FTPR app.  Just search for “FAIRtax Power Radio” in your app store, download the app and start listening.  

We post a new episode every Friday morning.  Please listen and tell everyone you know about the FAIRtax Power Radio.  

The FAIRtax: Once You Understand It, You’ll Demand It!

THE ELECTRONIC INTRODUCTION TO THE FAIRTAX - AMERICA’S BIG SOLUTION

America’s Big Solution is a basic introduction to the FAIRtax and is meant for people of any age.  And you can download it to your tablet or smartphone right now.

Do you know someone who would like an introduction to the FAIRtax and would prefer to read about it rather than search online for Tweets, Posts and Shares?  If so, America’s Big Solution is their best choice.

America’s Big Solution is an introduction to the FAIRtax written by Terry Tibbetts, author of A Spartan Game: The Life and Loss of Don Holleder, with help from Ron Maiellaro, President of the Florida FAIRtax Educational Association.  

You can buy an electronic version of ABS as follows:  AMERICA’S BIG SOLUTION is available for only $2.99 for the Amazon Kindle (http://amzn.to/1WIRHry), the Barnes & Noble Nook (http://bit.ly/1XeG8bH) and Apple iOS (http://apple.co/1tnqK0P).  

You can purchase a print copy at the same Amazon link above for $9.25.  Regardless of whether you choose the electronic format or the print format, you’ll find AMERICA’S BIG SOLUTION will give someone the boost they need to begin their study of the FAIRtax and the suggested resources to learn more. Buy AMERICA’S BIG SOLUTION now!

LINKS TO MORE INFORMATION

These links will help you promote and support the FAIRtax, make yourself familiar with the links below. We always do our best to keep our AFFT community up to date, and you can stay ahead of the curve using these convenient sites.

• The website of Americans for Fair Taxation (www.fairtax.org)
• Read the Summary of the Evasion Study. 
• Welcome to the Online FAIRtax Community  (member.fairtax.org) 
• The website at which you can help make it happen. (www.bigsolution.org)
• The Facebook page for Americans for Fair Taxation 
• The Facebook page for The FAIRtax Guys 
• The Twitter page for Americans for Fair Taxation 
• PopVox - Connecting people and lawmakers for more effective participation and better governing 
• YouTube channel for AFFT 
• The Official FAIRtax Logo Store (www.fairtaxlogostore.org)

                          
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