Our Threatened Freedom

Do Taxpayers Have Any Rights

Professor: Dr. R.J. Rushdoony

Subject: Political Studies

Lesson: 77-169

Genre: Conversation

Track: 077

Dictation Name: Vol. F - Part 12- Do Taxpayers Have Any Rights

Location/Venue: Unknown

Year: 1980’s – 1990’s

[Dr. Rushdoony] Do taxpayers have any rights? This is R.J. Rushdoony with a report on our threatened freedom.

In 1979, Leslie Snyder, in her book ‘Justice or Revolution’, called attention to the fact that taxpayers have fewer rights than accused murderers. The accused murderer has the following rights. He is innocent until proven guilty, is informed of his constitutional rights, needs not give evidence against himself, is entitled to trial by jury, the prosecutor may not also be the judge, he may not be prosecuted on basis of illegally obtained evidence, he may not be punished on testimony of secret informers who cannot be cross-examined, he may not be subjected to fines and punishments without due process of law.

The taxpayer has none of these rights. In other words, our laws regard the taxpayer as a dangerous man, and entitled to none of the rights granted to accused murderers.

Now I am not in favor of the tax revolt, but I can most certainly understand why it is spreading. When a country places penalties on its taxpayers which are not imposed upon suspected criminals, a number of people will most certainly rebel against the situation. Moreover, it creates a very dangerous climate of opinion.

As I traveled back and forth across the country, I find that a very large and growing number of people believe that the people spend more time writing out traffic tickets than trying to solve crimes. The traffic ticket is still another tax upon the taxpaying citizenry, and they resent the failure to solve most crimes and the readiness to tax or ticket the people.

More than once I’ve been told that city councils stress traffic tickets as a means of additional revenue. The American people do resent injustice. They do not take kindly to being exploited, and they do feel exploited. Taxation has become a means of exploitation, and they are, naturally, rebellious. Such an attitude is healthy, in that it points to a strong love of freedom. It tells us that the people are still ready to make a stand in terms of their principles.

At the same time, it is an unhealthy situation whenever, and wherever, the people begin to regard their own civil government as the enemy. It means that the civil government has become hostile to freedom, and is at war with its own people. In such a setting, lawlessness proliferates, and anarchy begins to take over.

The purpose of civil government should be the protection of the people, not their exploitation by taxation. Do you feel protected, or exploited and overtaxed? A growing number of Americans feel exploited and overtaxed.

This has been R.J. Rushdoony with a report on our threatened freedom.