Terminal Cancer in American Government

First of all, I want to say that the United States of America is the greatest country in the world but we still have our share of problems. This last week, Irwin Schiff, an author and anti-income tax activist was sentenced to prison for not paying income taxes and for encouraging others not to pay.

The Bush administration promised to overhaul our tax system but has yet to do so. President Bush has cut taxes but the whole system is corrupt and needs to be scrapped. Most young Americans don't know that income taxes only became a part of our life in the 1940's. Before that, there was no income tax on the American people. The federal income tax was started as a temporary measure to help finance World War II. Of course, any tax that is levied, is never taken away! When the federal income tax began, only a very small percentage of Americans made enough money to qualify to pay income taxes. That was back when a family might bring home $5,000 a year. Now, the system has flip-flopped. Very few people now do not pay income taxes. With the median income of the American citizen being somewhere between $30,000 and $40,000, what is average for an American citizen would have once been considered riches. Where the problem lies is that our tax system is based on percentages. When the income tax system began, a person making the median income of, let's say, $5,000 would not have made enough money to have to pay any income tax. Now, sixty years later, the same average American makes, let's say, $40,000 per year and he is taxed somewhere around 28% of his income, not counting sales tax, property taxes, taxes on good, etc.

America has become spoiled. The Democratic party, beginning with Franklin D. Roosevelt, began programs like the "New Deal" and "Social Security." American's have come to depend upon their government to provide for them instead of them doing what it takes to make ends meet.

In comes Irwin Schiff. Another one of the many tax protesters this country has endured for a time and then destroyed, Schiff was just sentenced to several years in a federal prison. At Schiff's age, this is certainly a death sentence. I am afraid that, even though America is the greatest country in the world, we are not a free country. We supposedly espouse virtues such as free speech until that voice is against the government and its institutions. The U.S. government will tolerate the antagonism for a time, until it begins to gather steam, all the while picking away at the smaller members of the voice. Let me explain. Irwin Schiff has been selling books and making speeches about the federal income tax system for years. Up until now the government has not touched him. They have however, attacked those that chose to follow Mr. Schiff's advice. Rest assured, the Department of Justice has been building a case for years against Mr. Schiff and the volcano has finally erupted. Once the government has your number, your chances of ever winning in court against it would be slim to none. As in Mr. Schiff's case, the judge will not even give the defendant a true opportunity to present his case. Whoever said that we are innocent until proven guilty in this country was not aware of the truth.

Let me give you a couple more examples of people, one that the government did destroy and one that the government tried to destroy. The first is Utah polygamist Tom Green. For the most part, Tom Green lived peacefully in his compound of trailer homes in the Utah desert with his wives and children. For some reason, Tom Green began making the American talk show circuit and began to be noticed by the federal government. One of the founding principles of the American society is that of freedom of religion. In the U.S.A. our rights to believe as we choose are protected by our constitution and bill of rights, unless it infringes upon someone else's rights or, in Tom Green's case, it is something that the majority of Americans disagree with. The federal government wanted to silence Tom Green but knew they had a problem. How could they arrest him for polygamy without having to go after the tens and perhaps hundreds of thousands of other polygamists in the U.S.? After much digging, the government discovered that Mr. Green had married one of his wife's 14 year old sister and had consumated the marriage. I do not believe that any adult male should ever sleep with a fourteen year old girl but there are two problems with the government's case against Tom Green. In Utah, a fourteen year old girl can marry an adult male with her parent's consent! I think that is totally irresponsible and Utah needs to change that law but it is the law. Secondly, Mr. Green slept with his fourteen year old bride in Mexico. Since when can we be charged in America with a crime we committed in another country. This may not have even been a crime in Mexico. One of the many reasons I believe that the government does not go after more polygamists is because they only marry one woman legally. With the other wives, the couple goes through a religious ceremony but no marriage certificate is applied for or filed through the state. How many people in our society have sexual encounters with multiple partners but it is not considered polygamy? The fact is, Tom Green became too vocal and was garnishing too much attention and our government shut him down without a good case against him.

The second victim of government abuse I want to speak about is Monica Lewinsky. Ms. Lewinsky, a White House aid was involved in the well known sex scandal with then President Bill Clinton. We all remember how President Clinton lied to try and find a way out of the situation he had caused. I still remember watching the political television shows one day when Clinton spin doctor, James Carville, began to label Ms. Lewinsky as a stalker. Clinton's administration had decided to destroy Monica Lewinsky's reputation and for all practical purposes, her future. In a matter of hours, Ms. Lewinsky produced the, now famous, semen stained dress. This immediately silenced the Clinton administration. As with many other administrations and our government as a whole, they showed no regard to the well being of their citizens.

I wish Mr. Schiff the best but I know that fighting the government in something like income taxes is an impossible tax. It is my belief that our government is consumed by a cancer that is terminal. I do not see how that our country will survive as a democracy for too many more years. Whether we are still a democracy is an arguable point now anyway.

Jay Mc

Irwin Schiff's Website
U.S. Department of Justice's Website about Irwin Schiff