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by sebastianconcpt 3675 days ago
How taxes aren't coercion?
2 comments

How is democracy not coercion? There are plenty of laws passed that I didn't want passed, yet I am forced to obey them.
Because if you don't like paying them, you don't have to. You can emigrate instead or, in the case of land taxes, sell your land.
That's like saying that the Mafia's protection racket isn't a form of coercion. You can choose to shut down your business, or move to a different city after all!

We need states to wield violence on our behalf, and the development of democratic republics has done much to curb some of the excesses of other forms of state (but democratic republics have their own uncurbed excesses). But we shouldn't fool ourselves about their fundamentally coƫrcive nature.

Steve Martin: how get a million dollars tax free. First, get a million dollars. Then when they haul you into court and ask why you didn't pay our taxes, say to the judge, "your honor, I forgot". What can they do to you?