Taxation is Theft and Authority is a Lie

I have a couple of lines of questioning for you to consider.  The first deals with the nature of taxation.  The second, the nature of authority.

The Nature of Taxation


What is theft?  Or if you prefer, what is robbery?  From www.dictionary.com:

Theft.  Noun.  The act of stealing; the wrongful taking and carrying away of the personal goods or property of another; larceny.

Robbery. Noun.  The felonious taking of the property of another from his or her person in his or her immediate presence, against his or her will, by violence or intimidation.

I would amend these to include acts of fraud as well.

Fraud.  Noun.  Deceit, trickery, sharp practice, or breach of confidence, perpetrated for profit or to gain some unfair or dishonest advantage.

Put more simply, I see "Theft" as the taking of something that does not belong to you, either by force or fraud.

Does the government own you, and by extension, the product of your labor?  Or do you own yourself, and so, the product of your own labor?  Because of public school "education," this one gives some people pause.  But the obvious answer is that the government does not own you, and so, cannot rightfully own the product of your labor.

In light of this, is it theft when the government takes the product of your labor through taxation?  If not, there is really only one alternative.  If taxation is not theft, then the government owns you, and taxation is slavery.  You might try to argue that it is neither, because you voluntarily and happily pay your taxes.  And maybe that's true for you, but what about your neighbor?  Are they happy to be extorted with every paycheck?  Morally speaking, you don't get to make that decision for them, only for yourself.

Bottom line: Taxation is theft, or worse, slavery.  But it's more than that.  If you don't pay your taxes, then eventually, men with guns will show up at your house to take everything you own and put you in a cage.  If you resist, they will use deadly force against you.  Ultimately, taxation is armed robbery with a side of aggravated assault.  And as with all robberies, sometimes government-sponsored robbery "goes wrong," and the victim winds up dead.

"If taxation without consent is not robbery, then any band of robbers have only to declare themselves a government, and all their robberies are legalized."  -Lysander Spooner

Authority is a Lie


Do you have the right to use violence to force your neighbors to behave a certain way?  Assuming they aren't aggressing against you you, clearly, you do not.  If you tried to force them to do what you wanted, you would be seen by all as a wrongful aggressor.  People would fully expect your neighbors to use self-defensive force against you.

Can you give a right you don't have to someone else?  Said another way, can you ask someone to use violence against your neighbors on your behalf?  Clearly, you cannot.  And once again, you (and your accomplice) would be seen as a wrongful aggressor.

Can you and your 10 best friends give away a right that none of you has individually?  Can the group of you decide to hire an agent to steal from your neighbor to fund a program you think would be good?  Once again, if none of you has this right, it cannot be given to another party.  The same can be said for any number of people.  You can all make a decision for yourselves - you can decide to chip in individually for a program or choose a leader for yourselves - but you cannot morally force these decisions on someone who has not voluntarily chosen to participate.

How, then, does a politician get the right to use violence ("law enforcement") and theft ("taxation") to run their organization?  If nobody can give this right to them - which they can't - then politicians do not have it.  In reality, politicians are nothing more than a gang of thugs who use violent, coercive force to form society as they see fit.  The only difference between the government and the mafia is that the general population thinks the government is legitimate, and the mafia is not.  Practically speaking, they operate in exactly the same manner.

The first step towards righting these wrongs is for people just like you to see the situation for what it is.  Spread the word.

"The ultimate authority must always rest with the individual's own reason and critical analysis." -Dalai Lama