“ A second reason, however, was that I am indebted to the British welfare state; the very one that Mr Cameron would like to replace with charity handouts. When my life hit rock bottom, that safety net, threadbare though it had become under John Major’s Government, was there to break the fall. I cannot help feeling, therefore, that it would have been contemptible to scarper for the West Indies at the first sniff of a seven-figure royalty cheque.”
J.K. Rowling. While I don’t line up with much of her politics, this is a nice stand, one against an all too common and unknown bit of trickery.
Perhaps this is a communications challenge that needs to be addressed: how can there be pride in paying taxes? Just yesterday I caught a shot of Fox News on the machine next to me at the gym, it’s bottom headline reading: “Poll Reveals Most Citizens Believe Tax is Wasted.” As if that was sufficient evidence to be upset at the process.
Perhaps the problem is that the feats taxes often provide are sufficiently mundane and detached from our daily lives to register an impact. We take roads for granted. We demand more from our government while avoiding every tax possible. Sure, there’s grift or waste in the system, but that shouldn’t lessen the volume of everyday success. (Via The Atlantic Wire)
