Posted on 11/23/2013 7:35:07 AM PST by PAR35
Should everybody pay some tax, even if only a small amount?
I presume by “everybody,” you don’t actually mean everybody. Not the enfeebled aged, not infant children, not massively handicapped.
If it wasn’t for our country’s sorry history with respect to race, I think we could tie the right to vote to the payment of a modest poll tax. But, with regard to an income tax, that should be a flat tax.
How does that sound?
I suggest all religions not get any tax breaks.... are too attached to this evil government anyway... pay taxes, no breaks... and then you should not be afraid of following your scriptures or speaking out about what you see as your first amendment rights... you will not have to lobby govt for anything or be afraid govt will shut down your perks or breaks if you dont toe their secular humanism.., rendering to Caesar what is Caesars....
Ultimate separation of church and state.... you want no gifts or perceived rights from this spiritual Egypt...
You sound like one of them ‘fishy’ ‘anarchist’ ‘wacko birds’ I’ve been hearing about..... /s
Just wait until they start deducting Obamacare from everyone’s paycheck like SS. Of course, if your income is too high, you will still pay in, but won’t be able to use it. If your income is too low, you won’t have the automatic deduction.
Varying rates depending on income, of course.
Coming soon, right after some Dem gets the White House and Senate next go around.
By the time my youngest starts to pay taxes, I’d bet dollar to donuts paychecks will have automatic deductions for this fiasco.
And how do you want your preferred tax policy established? Through the legislative process or through judicial activists who use rulings like this to support additional activism that is hostile to religion?
So Dave, your view seems to be that this ruling will result in a clarification of the process. If so that can only be a good thing.
Laws should apply to everyone equally, including "the poor."
People who don't have skin in the game never meet a tax they don't like.
When this govt continues to appear to ‘ slight’ religious orgs over others or appears to be picking on them, you will continue to see how this govt is no ally and hasn’t been for awhile (but bills are due and extra revenue is needed from those who haven’t been paying) better to know you live in enemy territory now... who knows... it may be that people will have to worship in homes, in cellars, in secret and not in fancy tax exempt church buildings in due time in this secular country.. this is a secular country with a secular govt and secular humanists have been in charge... and they need $$$$$$$... it isn’t going to get better.... the bible tells me so...
…that’s FEDERAL judge. 0bama appointee?
I agree. Congress should eliminate exemptions & credits, and they should cut tax rates, for all income taxpayers. It would be easy for anyone to calculate their taxes, in 10 minutes, and no one would need to pay anyone to do it.
>>Not only does it come off the tax rolls, the City then has to maintain it ad infinitum. It is costly. Sometimes you have to say, “Enough!”<<
So get off your butt and get the townspeople to support leasing most of the currently held open property to private companies or individuals to lower the taxes.
Not to argue with the ruling but I would like to know who the plaintive is and how they have any standing. So many attempts to enforce Constitutional limitations on the federal government or to seek the qualification of Obama to be president have been thrown out on procedural grounds because of lack of standing. How does the plaintive here have standing?
You can’t be serious. If you are I support your plan. How do we institute it?
We try that all the time. Ever try to get the School Board to let loose of anything? It’s difficult, but this year they are considering putting their excess property up for sale. Considering — not actually doing it. Yet. If only they’d consolidate a few excess schools...
FTA: “It’s a really big deal,” said Annie Laurie Gaylor, co-president of the Madison-based Freedom From Religion Foundation, which filed the lawsuit.
The “Freedom From Religion” folks are the Madison, WI atheists who challenge everything, including the Pledge of Allegience, Christmas in schools, “In God We Trust” on our money, and Baccalaureate celebrations at graduation.
Ditto...
More important, no more WITHOLDING.
All taxes of any kind should be paid with cash or check only as you pick up your ballot to vote.
A lot of people would vote very differently if they realized what they are really paying.
I doubt that there will be clarification. But, clergy will be in the IRS crosshairs.
You and the other pastors in the area affected by Barb Crabb’s decision have my sympathy. She ruled with the usual leftist’s anti religion idea rather than looking at the correct religious neutrality our Constitution intended.
The tax break was to balance the effect on pastors/rabbis,etc who had to pay for housing compared to those who lived in housing owned by their church. The tax exemption existed for church property and to tax a stipend for a pastor living elsewhere had an adverse effect on a congregations ability to keep a pastor.
Abuse happens when a so called pastor whose congregation amounts to his family or two people showing up in a storefront called a church gets the exemption. If the IRS is tasked on ruling what is or not a church, who knows where it leads? We may end up with only the building with the alter so defined. Maybe small churches will need to buy a house for the pastor, title it in the name of the church and pay the mortgage if they want to keep the housing allowance separate from the wage.
Beware of unintended consequences. If the church owns the parsonage or rectory, the government gets no taxes. If property is owned or rented by the clergy, the federal government gets social security and medicare taxes on the housing allowance and the community gets property taxes.
Eliminate the income tax exemption from the housing allowance, and more churches will be buying parsonages resulting in a net loss to social security, medicare, and the local communities.
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