Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Sharks in the Septic Tank -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Sidney Reilly who wrote (19580)	7/29/2001 5:16:25 PM
From: E	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 82486

Hi, Sidney! It's been ages. I hope all is well in your life. I appreciate your generosity in helping pay for religious freedoms. Since the power to tax is the power to destroy, then for the government to tax religions would be an attempt by the government to destroy that religion. Well, how about not taxing the religion, or the proceeds from taking up collections or tithing or the thrift shop in the basement or bake sales 'n stuff, but would you go maybe for paying a teeny bit of tax on the billions of dollars brought in by their entirely non-religious businesses and real estate, things like that? Just a little to defray the cost to the taxpayer for services not to the church, and not to religious freedom, but to the big businesses? Maybe little businesses could be free and giganto ones could pay some taxes? Would that be destroying religion? Just having rilly BIG business pay an eensy weensy bit? How about voluntarily? They could chip in from their profits. The IRS could go to the CEO's with collection plates, and a sealed envelope could be dropped in. Would that be destroying religion? Who knew that the religious freedom our forefathers so valued meant no taxes on multi-million dollar profit-making capitalist enterprises? The government is attempting to destroy me. How dare they.

To: Sidney Reilly who wrote (19580)	7/29/2001 8:58:54 PM
From: Dayuhan	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 82486

Since the power to tax is the power to destroy, then for the government to tax religions would be an attempt by the government to destroy that religion. And the constitution prohibits that. By that reasoning, government should not be permitted to maintain an army or a police force, either of which could be used to destroy religion. I do not see that granting Government a power that could hypothetically be used to destroy religion violates the Constitutional protection of religion. If that power is actually used destructively, that would be another story. I have mixed feelings on the taxation of religion. Certainly I believe that religious organizations should be required to make a public accounting of their finances. I would have no problem with allowing tax exemptions to those operating on a small scale, or those that can demonstrate that their income is used for maintaining themselves, for charitable works, etc. But I don't see any reason why religious organizations that are effectively operating as businesses, and accumulating substantial resources, should not be taxed. Certainly I would say that organizations involved in partisan politics or aggressive evangelism should forfeit their tax exemption. And the idea that individual religious intermediaries should not pay taxes is quite offensive: they use the same services and enjoy the same protections as anyone else; there is no reason why they shouldn't pay their share of the cost. eventually the war on religion will step up and the government WILL try to destroy religion as we slowly submit to the tyranny of the majority in this country. What war on religion? If we submit to the tyranny of the majority, it is the atheists that will have to be worried; we are wildly outnumbered by the religious, and followers are more likely to be roused to violence than free thinkers.