The pursuit of Constitutionally grounded governance, free
markets and individual liberty
"There is but
one straight course, and that is to seek truth and pursue it steadily." --George Washington
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Individually, Americans do not deserve
to be subservient to such a fear-mongering, intimidating and powerful agency as
the Internal Revenue Service; but collectively, we do. Let’s look at it. Since the 1791
ratification of our Constitution, until well into the 1920s, federal spending
as a percentage of gross domestic product never exceeded 5 percent, except
during war. Today federal spending is 25 percent of our GDP. State and local
government spending is about 15 percent of the GDP. That means government
spends more than 40 cents of each dollar we earn. If we add
government’s regulatory burden, which is simply a disguised form of taxation,
the government take is more than 50 percent of what we produce.
In order to squeeze out of us half of what we produce, a government tax collection agency must be ruthless and able to put the fear of God into its citizens. The IRS has mastered that task. Congress has given it powers that would be deemed criminal if used by others. For example, the Constitution’s Fifth Amendment protects Americans against self-incrimination and being forced to bear witness against oneself. That’s precisely what one does when he is compelled to sign his income tax form.
However, a Fifth Amendment argument can’t be used as a defense in a court of law. The IRS will counter that you voluntarily provided the information on your tax return.
If you’re in debt to Bank of America, Wells Fargo or any other private creditor, in order for it to garnish your wages as a means of collecting debt, it must first get a court order.
By contrast, the IRS can garnish your wages without having to get a court order first. If your employer doesn’t obey the IRS and send it a portion of your wages, he will be held accountable for what you owe. At the minimum, some IRS collection procedures violate one of the basic tenets of the rule of law – namely, the law of the land applies equally to individuals (and other private entities) and the government (and its officials and agents).
Our Founding Fathers feared the emergence of an agency such as the IRS and its potential for abuse. That’s why they gave us Article 1, Section 9 of the Constitution, which reads: “No Capitation, or other direct, Tax shall be laid, unless in Proportion to the Census or Enumeration herein before directed to be taken.” A capitation is a tax placed directly on an individual.
That’s what an income tax is. The founders feared the abuse and the government power inherent in a direct tax. In Section 8 of Article 1, they added, “But all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States.” These protections the founders gave us were undone by the Progressive era’s 16th Amendment, which reads, “The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census or enumeration.”
If federal spending were only 5 percent of our GDP ($750 billion) – instead of 25 percent ($3.8 trillion) – there would be no need for today’s oppressive and complicated tax system. You might ask, “How could we be a great nation without all the government spending?” When our Constitution was ratified in 1791, we were a weak and poor nation. One hundred forty years later, with federal spending a mere pittance of what it is today, we became the world’s richest and most powerful nation. No small part of this miracle was limited and un-intrusive government.
The bottom line is that members of Congress need such a ruthless tax collection agency as the IRS because of the charge we Americans have given them. We want what the IRS does – namely, to take the earnings of one American so Congress can create a benefit for some other American. Don’t get angry with IRS agents. They are just following orders.
In order to squeeze out of us half of what we produce, a government tax collection agency must be ruthless and able to put the fear of God into its citizens. The IRS has mastered that task. Congress has given it powers that would be deemed criminal if used by others. For example, the Constitution’s Fifth Amendment protects Americans against self-incrimination and being forced to bear witness against oneself. That’s precisely what one does when he is compelled to sign his income tax form.
However, a Fifth Amendment argument can’t be used as a defense in a court of law. The IRS will counter that you voluntarily provided the information on your tax return.
If you’re in debt to Bank of America, Wells Fargo or any other private creditor, in order for it to garnish your wages as a means of collecting debt, it must first get a court order.
By contrast, the IRS can garnish your wages without having to get a court order first. If your employer doesn’t obey the IRS and send it a portion of your wages, he will be held accountable for what you owe. At the minimum, some IRS collection procedures violate one of the basic tenets of the rule of law – namely, the law of the land applies equally to individuals (and other private entities) and the government (and its officials and agents).
Our Founding Fathers feared the emergence of an agency such as the IRS and its potential for abuse. That’s why they gave us Article 1, Section 9 of the Constitution, which reads: “No Capitation, or other direct, Tax shall be laid, unless in Proportion to the Census or Enumeration herein before directed to be taken.” A capitation is a tax placed directly on an individual.
That’s what an income tax is. The founders feared the abuse and the government power inherent in a direct tax. In Section 8 of Article 1, they added, “But all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States.” These protections the founders gave us were undone by the Progressive era’s 16th Amendment, which reads, “The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census or enumeration.”
If federal spending were only 5 percent of our GDP ($750 billion) – instead of 25 percent ($3.8 trillion) – there would be no need for today’s oppressive and complicated tax system. You might ask, “How could we be a great nation without all the government spending?” When our Constitution was ratified in 1791, we were a weak and poor nation. One hundred forty years later, with federal spending a mere pittance of what it is today, we became the world’s richest and most powerful nation. No small part of this miracle was limited and un-intrusive government.
The bottom line is that members of Congress need such a ruthless tax collection agency as the IRS because of the charge we Americans have given them. We want what the IRS does – namely, to take the earnings of one American so Congress can create a benefit for some other American. Don’t get angry with IRS agents. They are just following orders.
~~~~~~
IRS Employee: D.C. Told Us
To Target Tea Party by
Kerry Picket
House
Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA) revealed
new testimony from IRS employees on CNN's State of The Union on Sunday.
According to transcribed excerpts released by the Committee, a Cincinnati IRS
employee made it clear they were told by Washington, D.C. personnel to give
extra scrutiny to Tea Party groups:
Q: In early 2010, was there a
time when you became aware of applications that referenced Tea Party or other
conservative groups?
A: In March of 2010, I was made aware.
Q:
Okay. Now, was there a point around this time period when [your
supervisor] asked you to do a search for similar applications?
A: Yes.
Q: To the
best of your recollection, when was this request made?
A: Sometime in early March of 2010.
Q: Did [your
supervisor] give you any indication of the need for the search, any more
context?
A: He told me that Washington, D.C., wanted some
cases.
Q: So as of
April 2010, these 40 cases were held at that moment in your group; is that
right?
A: Some were.
Q: How
many were held there?
A: Less than 40. Some went to Washington,
D.C.
Q:
Okay. How many went to Washington, D.C.?
A: I sent seven.
Q: So you
prepared seven hard copy versions of the applications to go to Washington,
D.C.?
A: Correct.
Q: Did he
give you any sort of indication as to why he requested you to do that?
A: He said Washington, D.C. wanted seven.
Because at one point I believe I heard they were thinking 10, but it came down
to seven. I said okay, seven.
Q: How did
you decide which seven were sent?
A: Just the first seven.
Q: The first
seven to come into the system?
A: Yes.
Read balance of text here
~~~~~~
~~~~~~
Economic Fairness 45% Think U.S. Economy Is Fair,
Improvement from May
Voters
overwhelmingly believe in the value of hard work and think it should be
rewarded. But over half continue to feel the U.S. economy is not fair. A new
Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 90% of Likely U.S.
Voters believe it is important that people who are physically able to work are
required to support themselves, including 71% who consider it Very Important. Ninety
percent (90%) also think it’s important to insure that everyone who is willing
to work hard has a chance to earn a middle class lifestyle, with 67% who regard
it as Very Important. Overall,
just 45% of voters now view the U.S. economy as at least somewhat fair.
Fifty-one percent (51%) consider the economy in this country to be unfair. This
is an improvement since May, but similar to attitudes
~~~~~~
Maher: Bush Biking With Iraq Vets Is Like Ohio Kidnapper
Throwing Victims ‘A Pizza Party’
Bill
Maher attacked former President George W Bush on Friday night over Bush’s third annual Wounded Warrior 100K with veterans of
the Iraq War. “I found this to be nauseating,” Maher said. “First he sends them off to
war to get their limbs blown off, then he has them over for a barbecue. This is
like the Cleveland guy having a pizza party for those girls he had in his
basement.”
~~~~~~
Government Website for Girls Teaches Mutual Masturbation,
Gay Sex, and Birth Control
A
government website designed for girls ages 10 to 16 offers health advice and
information on a wide range of topics, including homosexuality, anal sex and
“mutual masturbation.” The Health and Human Services’
girlshealth.gov includes tips on fitness and nutrition and an “environmental
health” section where girls can read about leading a “green” lifestyle. But
the site also includes a glossary that explains anal sex and “mutual masturbation”
and includes information about birth control and how to access everything from
condoms to “emergency contraceptives.” The website is described this way on the
“About”
portion: “Girlshealth.gov was created in 2002 by the U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services’ (HHS) Office on Women’s Health (OWH) to help girls (ages 10
to 16) learn about health, growing up, and issues they may face.
Girlshealth.gov promotes healthy and positive behaviors in girls, giving them
reliable and useful health information in a fun, easy-to-understand way.” “The
website also provides information to parents and educators to help them teach
girls about healthy living,” the site states. “Our tagline is ‘Be Happy. Be
Healthy. Be You. Beautiful. It focuses on the idea that being yourself —
finding what makes you smile and how to live well — is what makes you ‘you.’
And that is beautiful!” The mission statement also notes that the
website is for girls ages 10 to 16.
~~~~~~
Court challenges could tear down major pieces of
ObamaCare
President
Obama’s healthcare law is under attack in the courts even as the administration
sprints toward full implementation. Despite surviving a stiff challenge at the
Supreme Court last year, some of the law’s biggest provisions remain at risk
from legal challenges. One set of lawsuits accuses the Internal Revenue Service
of illegally implementing new subsidies to help people buy insurance.
Separately, more than 60 lawsuits have been filed challenging the law’s mandate
for health plans to cover birth control. A loss for the administration on the
contraception mandate would undermine a key selling point for the law that
Democrats used to court women in the 2012 elections.
~~~~~~
Seriously Jacked Up: Obama Admin Cuts Hot Meals for
Afghan Troops By Bill Briggs, NBC News
Marines
at Camp Leatherneck in Afghanistan will lose a key daily meal starting
Saturday, causing some to forgo a hot breakfast and others to work six-plus
hours without refueling on cooked food, according to Marines at the base and
Marine Corps officials.
The midnight ration service — known there as “midrats” — supplies breakfast to
Marines on midnight-to-noon shifts and dinner to Marines who are ending
noon-to-midnight work periods. It’s described as one of the few times the
Marines at Leatherneck can be together in one place. The base, which is located
in Afghanistan’s southwestern Helmand Province, flanked by Iran and
Pakistan, also will remove its 24-hour sandwich bar. It plans to replace
the dishes long offered at midnight with pre-packaged MREs, said Marine Corps
Lt. Col. Cliff Gilmore, who has been deployed in Afghanistan since February. The
moves, though unpopular with many Marines on the ground and their families back
home, are emblematic of the massive drawdown of American troops in Afghanistan
and the dismantling of U.S. military facilities. More than 30,000 U.S. service
members will leave Afghanistan in coming months as the U.S. prepares to hand
responsibility for security to Afghan forces in 2014. While no Marine at Camp Leatherneck
agreed to speak on the record, many are privately angry about the hit on
base morale. “This boils my skin. One of my entire shifts will go 6.5
hours without a meal. If we need to cut back on money I could come up with
100 other places,” one Leatherneck-based Marine wrote in an email this
week to his wife and shared with NBC News. (The Marine declined to speak on the
record.) “Instead, we will target the biggest contributor to morale. I must
be losing my mind. What is our senior leadership thinking? I just got back
from flying my ass off and in a few days, I will not have a meal to replenish
me after being away for over 9 hours.”
~~~~~~
Issa warns Holder not to take ‘perjury lightly’
House
Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) strongly suggested that
Attorney General Eric Holder perjured himself before a congressional panel
investigating the Justice Department’s treatment of reporters. In an
interview on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Issa warned Holder not to “use perjury
lightly” when discussing his approval of a search warrant for the emails of Fox
News reporter James Rosen. “It’s hard to have confidence in what this attorney
general says or what his people say,” Issa said Sunday. The Justice Department (DOJ) is
investigating Rosen for allegedly soliciting classified information from a
government source. DOJ has denied that Holder lied to the House Judiciary
Committee when he said that he was never involved in the “potential prosecution
of the press for the disclosure of material.”
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