This is Pastor Tim’s article which appeared in the Evening Leader on Tuesday, May 9
Let me give you a hypothetical situation and let’s consider it together. Suppose there was an issue in our country that was incredibly divisive. In fact, the issue was so divisive that there was talk of the United States breaking apart with several states withdrawing from the union over their extreme dissatisfaction. This issue had been discussed at great length by politicians and it came to an impasse every time. Finally, some states became tired of the never-ending argument and decided to leave. One by one, the states began to leave to become their own area with no ties to the Federal Government.
Upon this happening, the government decided to force these states to stay and accept the stance on the issue taken by those in the government. It was not a popular decision, but the majority of the states ratified it, and those who disagreed were being forced to stay. What was thought to be a skirmish that would be over quickly broke into all out war and the full force of the military of the federal government as well as what soldiers could be mustered in the territories that left came together with Americans fighting Americans.
In order to pay for this war effort, the federal government created a completely new system of taxes to finance the war effort. The new system of taxes was called the federal income tax, a whole new tax that had never existed prior to this war. Now it did not matter what side of the issue you were on; you were forced to finance the war that went on for years and cost thousands of Americans their lives in bloody conflict.
Does that sound like something that could ever happen? Most of you probably have already recognized what I described. This exact thing happened beginning in 1861 and one of the main issues at hand was whether or not slavery would be tolerated in our nation. Thousands of Americans spilt blood to say no, it would not be tolerated.
In 1862, President Abraham Lincoln instituted a federal income tax, a tax previously unheard of. Prior to that time, taxes only existed in the form of sales taxes and tariffs. It was those very taxes that started the Revolutionary War. Remember the Boston Tea Party? Colonists decided to throw King George’s tea into the harbor rather than pay his God forsaken taxes on it.
Taxes have always been a huge contention between leaders and people of any society. The problem is, taxes always spiral further and further out of control. The leaders quickly realize that taxes are a means to control, and the people realize that taxes are how we get more stuff out of the government. Both of those mindsets drive up how much taxes we must pay. The question is, what is fair share and what is simply extortion? People draw that line in very different places.
I just read an article on Yahoo news that the IRS is in the process of hiring a new branch of special agents. These agents, working for the IRS, will be legally armed and cleared to use deadly force. If you have been reading my articles for any length of time, you know that I have no problem with guns. But can someone explain to me why the IRS needs agents armed who are cleared to use deadly force? These agents are hired by and work for the IRS. It isn’t like there was an investigation and then law enforcement was called into a situation. I completely see the need for that. But for people who are trained to go over accounting practices and audit business to catch people cheating on taxes or money laundering, why do those people need to carry a government issued gun? How many accountants and bankers are they going to have to shoot?
Is the government convinced that they are going to have so many cases of dangerous people who don’t file the proper paperwork that they need agents armed to shoot them? Again, I realize there are dangerous people out there, but that kind of work should go to law enforcement, not the IRS. What’s next? Are we going to arm DMV workers to make sure people have their car tags up to date?
Anyone that the government issues a gun to should be a law enforcement officer or a soldier in the military tasked with the singular directive to save innocent life. No more and no less. And I don’t see how the IRS can carry out that directive.