An?article on the BBC and elsewhere notes that witches and astrologers are now recognized occupations in Romania and no longer part of the underground economy. Practitioners’ incomes are now taxable-and practitioners are now covered by the country’s pension and health insurance schemes. Some witches have cast spells to overturn the new regulations, while others like the new benefits more than they dislike paying the new taxes.
This bizarre case should be an important reminder in these Tea Party days: Our taxes buy something-the services of government. Being locked out of government, as the witches were, has both costs and benefits. It’s natural to try to free-ride on the taxes of others; but if enough of us did that, simple economics shows that the services wouldn’t be provided. In a country like the U.S., with relatively low taxes and few services, do we want to provide even fewer services in order to keep taxes so low or cut them still further?
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Government should be restricted to the provision of public goods, such as the military, police, courts, some infrastructure, pollution regulation, etc. Health care and pensions are rival, private goods. We should simply scale back government to those services which the private sector cannot provide and then set the appropriate taxation level.
I can’t help but point out that the connection between witches and the tea party is already well established.
Come on, Colin. Why think that the services you list are any more “public” than services like healthcare? Private companies could be contracted to provide for defense, police, infrastructure, etc. I’m not sure that I *want* the private sector doing those jobs, but then, I’m not sure I want the private sector providing healthcare, either.
Prior to 9/11 there were over 200 psychics listed in the Greater NYC area Yellow Pages. They predict the future.
Yet none on 9/10/01 had any premonition nor wrote down a warning of the impending catastrophe.
I asked a psychic why she did not predict this event? She said it’s not her field. She deals with people not buildings or aeroplanes.
I think 9/11 was very much about its effects on people. I do not subscribe to psychic abilities. But I do admire Nostrodamus’ abundant thick beard.
The US government is less concerned with recognizing your occupation than with recognizing your income. American tax authorities would be pleased to scrutinize any and all types of unreported income.
The UK Natural Law party once put out a party election broadcast in which magician Dougie Henshall pledged to “magic the economy into shape”.
It can’t be any worse than the other “solutions” currently on offer – I say we get the witches onside by giving them generous tax breaks if they can fix things.
For me, and I think for many people, the tax issue is almost irrelevant. It’s the “services” – the TSA, the War on Drugs, “RealID”, a health care program that penalizes us for having chosen to live a healthy lifestyle, and much more – that I don’t want. I certainly would be willing to pay more to free myself of them.
I think that the American people should understand American values. Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are all encompassed in legislation. In cutting taxes we are giving an individual the higher right to do whatever they want with less government influence.
Also, I agree with jlive and Colin in that the government should provide a set amount of services and whatever the government does not pick up a private company will. Similar to the way health care is currently run. Government helps the poor and old.