Time to ‘Occupy’ the IRS?

[marmar]

from Consortium News:



Time to ‘Occupy’ the IRS?
April 4, 2012

As Americans struggle with their tax returns, they are reminded how skewed the tax system has become, with multi-millionaires who live off investments paying a lower rate that middle-class people who go to work every day, a situation that Danny Schechter says deserves protest.

By Danny Schechter


Every year I trek down to a nondescript office building near Wall Street with a bag full of receipts and a belly full of anxiety. When it’s tax time, I always hope for the best but …

I also had an accountant whom I trusted to keep me on the up and up. He was recommended years earlier by the Yippie activist Abbie Hoffman, who wanted to avoid the Al Capone problem of getting nabbed on tax charges.

Abbie had been busted enough for his political activities and didn’t want more jail time for non-payment of taxes. So he had to be like the driven snow to withstand any audit. And he was. He was a revolutionary who held his nose and paid the man.

Back in the day, the government used IRS investigations to threaten political activists and to intimidate activists who paid their taxes, as opposed to those who became tax resisters and refused to pay for wars. ...............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://consortiumnews.com/2012/04/04/time-to-occupy-the-irs/

[midnight]

1. I think they still threaten political activists.... Look at Willie Nelson..

[jade3000]

2. Taxes ... they support the military and support food for women & infant children

I can't stand them sometimes. Other times I like them. I'd say that I wish we could choose which programs our tax dollars go to, but that might result in even more dollars going to the military and fewer to social service programs. After all, the military can market itself much better than a homeless person can.

[JayhawkSD]

3. Don't blame the IRS

They don't make the tax laws, set the rates or establish collection policy. Congress does that.

If you don't like it, vote your Senators and Representative out of office.