That pretty well sums up a central function of every government on earth: conservative and liberal, reactionary and progressive, authoritarian, democratic, fascist and socialist and royal. The only question is, who should be taxed, how much, and where should the collective wealth then be spent? “Cutting taxes” is the battle cry of every politician, a knee-jerk reaction to convention and a dishonest bow to some imagined base. The truth is every government will tax and every government will spend, and they must. We all want the water to run when we turn the faucet on; we all want the bridge to stand as we cross it; we all want the sewers to do their job.
In a democracy, we should not only openly discuss the truth of taxing and spending, but we should insist on transparency on the big question of who is being taxed and where those taxes get spent. Let the people decide whether to fund war or education, incarceration or social security, militarization or health care. Straight up.
Bill Ayers 
I couldn’t agree more….and to that end, the Middle Class doesn’t need a tax cut, as Obama promises, although we do need Universal Healthcare and the military budget needs to decreased by, say, 90%. Actually, the tax structure should resemble what it was under FDR, but we need the say in how it’s spent, and the transparency to determine that it is spent as intended. The trillions of lost tax dollars at the Pentagon, anyone?
Tax is the rent we pay for living in a civilization.
There’s no discussion in America, there’s no democracy. Just aristocracy. It’s saddening.
I am a married, mother of two, homeowner. We pay $4000 a year in property taxes, federal income taxes, state income taxes, sales taxes and excise taxes. In return our boys get a good public education, our trash gets picked up, our water flows, our sewerage is disposed of, our streets are cleared of snow, our teachers, police officers, firefighters and public works employees are all paid salaries and benefits, along with our town’s administrators. I feel it is part of my responsibility as a US Citizen to pay taxes for these services and more and I don’t mind.
I don’t mind that my taxes help my neighbors who can’t afford rent, utilities, clothes and food. I do not feel as though they are getting the best of my money. I feel blessed to have my life and I feel blessed that I can help others less fortunate than myself.
I don[t like the idea of bailing out millionaires, but I also want my country to get back on track and can only hope these people know what they are doing.
I decided to find out more about this radical guy Bill Ayers and this is the first thing I read and it seems like you are right on track.
I look forward to learning more about your past, your present and your future. I’m not sure if blowing shit up is the way to make a point, seems a little excessive and stupid, especially since so many of your friends died. But, I do think we need question authority and I was opposed to the Vietnam War when I was just a kid (born 1961) and I am opposed to our current war.
A-fucking-men.
absolutely, bill!
The truth is if we had no military we could be inventing cool stuff like the Japanese do; space elevators, stem cells from wisdom teeth, and cloning woolly mammoths. Although I do expect a militarization of Japan in the future but this is way OT.
I have read somewhere Americans are taxed more than the serfs in feudal Europe.
Tonight history will be made when Senator Obama is elected the next President of the United States, But for me and my husband, who have traversed that dreaded bridge over the $250,000 mark in terms of income before taxes, it is a bit daunting. At the present time, my husband employs 11 wonderful people full-time, ( I work sans salary), pays 100% of their health insurance benefits,(a PPO which allows them to choose their physicians/medical facilities) 2 weeks paid vacation, 2 weeks sick pay, and the usual holidays and religious observances. We work seven days a week; he works a minimum of 14 hours per day, and has for the past twenty years. I ride a tricycle, he drives a 2003 Toyota Matrix. After 20 years we, and not the bank, own our “house with character.” My husband still makes house calls, accepts Medicaid patients when countless physicians do not, and regularly sees patients who are unable to pay free-of-charge. We don’t do vacations, Charlie Trotters, or Michigan Avenue, and the only jewelry we wear are our wedding bands.
It is more than a bit upsetting to contemplate being in a situation where we can no longer afford the salaries and benefits for all of the people who work with us. At a time when Medicaid is approximately nine months behind in paying allowable charges for services rendered, with no indication if/when any monies might be received because, as Mr. Hynes office has indicated, “The State is broke”, we’ve dipped into what little savings we have left in order to float the boat. More taxes will most certainly force us to make some very unpleasant choices.
Very selfish thinking, to be certain. But what to do, what to do?
Dear Mr. Ayers, I read your interview with David Remnick. I must say, I really respect your decision to stay out of the ridiculous debate about your relations with Obama.
Universal Healthcare? Check out the BBC report on England’s NHS. It’s turning into a two tier system, where those with additional insurance get better and unequal care,
their IT initaitive has a cost overun of ten times estimate, 20Billion vs. 2 Billion, a shortage of trained Doctors, thanks to a limit of available spots in medical schools,
and with an aging population no way to lower expenses as need for care rises. Be careful what you wish for, your life is in the balance.