Taxes
Imagine not having to pay taxes. Many of us dream about what we'd do with that solid chunk of money that gets sent away to the government. We don't exactly know where that solid chunk of our earnings goes. What we do know is that it can't go exactly where we want it to. "I don't support NATO. Why does a whopping twenty percent of my taxes go towards the military? There aren't any fires anymore. I'll hire my own firefighters." What's a person to do? Thoreau says don't pay the taxes if you don't agree with them. However the truth of the matter is, it is one's civil duty to pay taxes.Henry David Thoreau was living in America during a period of slavery and the Mexican War, both of which he strongly disapproved of. It crushed him to think that his hard-earned money would be used to buy weapons to kill people, or support a government that approves of slavery. He believed that the only way he could express his dissaproval was to simply not pay the taxes. By this method he was content in the fact that he was in no way approving or funding two issues that his morals conflicted
Thoreau believed that if one's morals, the very code that they lived by, did not agree with any part of the government's workings it was not only his right, but his duty to disobey and rebel against these workings. Even more importantly, many live with the conscience that their money funds a judgment of our government that their morals do not support. Society requires a level of organization to allow man to live fully. Keep in mind that this is only one small example of what would happen if taxes were not dutifully paid. Should all of them refuse to pay taxes as Thoreau preached?What would our country be like if society did as Thoreau said? For example, when state taxes are collected the money is sent to the government of that state. When taxes are paid our money may go towards something that we do not feel right contributing to. ) It can be assumed that any citizen in the whole United States has some issue with the government. Without the taxes they require, all of these sections will crumble, and our government will be destroyed. The next time you see it happen, perhaps an old lady being robbed of her groceries, you know better than to try and help. There would be no one to stop bank robberies, shootings, and rapists. A portion of that money is distributed to the police force. It is important to keep in mind that many of those factions one does approve of, and not only approve of, but require. Without police officers, there would be chaos. The police is only a small fraction of the government's infrastructure that would collapse.
Common topics in this essay:
Mexican War,
Necessity Imagine,
pay taxes,
David Thoreau,
money sent,
money sent government,
police officers,
paying taxes,
solid chunk,
sent government,
|