Taxes and bondage

On Dec. 6, 1865, the 13th Amendment was ratified, constitutionally abolishing slavery and involuntary servitude. Then comes Feb. 3, 1913, the 16th Amendment was ratified, authorizing the progressive income tax. Neither amendment repealed the unalienable property rights acknowledged by the Fourth and Fifth amendments, nor were the spending authorities of the Congress, specifically enumerated in Article I, Section 8, expanded.

Government requires taxing authorities to perform those functions and duties lawfully authorized or required. But the primary purpose of federal taxation has morphed from its “necessary and proper” functions to confiscating the earned properties of some persons and directly, or indirectly, gifting it to another. If you doubt this, please review the IRS “outlay” pie chart which documents that up to 70 percent of disbursements is wealth redistribution, plus 5 percent interest.

When an arbitrarily determined number of citizens have inequitable amounts of their labor confiscated under duress, while others are exempted and/or profit from that taking, you have functional involuntary servitude.

There was a time when this oppressive attitude governed parts of the republic but, thankfully, the Old South lost that argument. Do you really support the return of that repugnant and rejected philosophy, to any degree?

Gary Warren

Spokane