Hehir on tax is love

Liam Hehir writes:

Outside the few hundred objectivists in this country, I think we can all agree that taxation is essential to maintaining a modern civilisation. Without tax, there can be no state. And the state has a natural and indispensable function in securing the common good. So without tax, life would be Hell.

 But does that mean there’s something wrong with you if you don’t have a song in your heart when paying provisional tax? Hardly. Resenting the taxman doesn’t make you morally inferior. It makes you human.

 In our house, we regularly serve broccoli to our sons. Our oldest really hates it because of its bitter taste. But that has to be balanced against all the fibre, vitamins, potassium and other health-promoting agents packed into those small, green, flowery heads. So the rule is that he has to eat some minimal amount of the stuff.

 Of course, we don’t insist that he actually like it. We’ve never tried to browbeat him into enjoying broccoli because “broccoli is love.” We’re not that controlling and he’s not that dumb.

The campaign is an insult to our intelligence.

Most of us work really hard and take on a lot of stress to earn a living. It will never feel great to see a large share of it pass out of our control. We all have things we would rather do with that money.

And that’s why, for example, individual spending scandals will always stick in our craw. It doesn’t matter how small it is in the scheme of things. When the Crown takes such a big share of what you had to struggle so hard to earn, how can it not be frustrating to read about a government department spending $70,000 on a sign?

Are you really supposed to comfort yourself with thoughts about much love that wasteful sign represents?

That being said, and speaking as somebody who believes in moderate taxation, I can only encourage the “tax is love” theme. Please. I mean it. Don’t let me stop you.

True – it is so pathetic it backfires.