Today all over the nation people were holding “tea partys” about the spending of the nations money and it therefore raises our taxes and we have had no say in the matter. Our nation is so far in debt it will take generations to fix and it is apparently to help fix our economy when it is actually hurting us beyond repair. All the economists that have been watching this before it happened all did not want this to happen. All of them said to not do it was a bad thing whether they were democract or republican.
The “tea partys” were comprised of democrats and republicans protesting the spendingof our nations money. The only news station that covered this was fox news. No other news station, CNN, MSNBC, ABC, NBC, HLN (head line news). there was one station that mentioned it, but it was a one liner and then it was done with. They think that by ignoring it it will go away. The one they showed on fox news was held at the Alamo in Texas and hosted by Glenn Beck. They used the Alamo because the people that stood there defending it were doing the same thing people were all over the nation with the tea partys. They were protesting something that they didn’t like. They said that they weren’t blaming obama for all the spending he’s been doing but the spending him, G.W.Bush, and Clinton for all the spending since then. Which im willing to see that point but anybody who follows this knows that Obama has thrown us into the toilet with his spending and his stimulus bill.
Im not saying its one party or person thats the problem. Its the government and all the spending they’re doing without us having any say in the matter. The government has forgotten that they cant just do whatever they want and that we run the goernment. Does the all time saying of ,"…a government for the people, by the people…" meen anything to them anymore?
The point is, that the government is spending money out the ass and think they can without our opinion and the tea partys our way of saying we dont like what your doing and they think that they can just ignore us. Im a republican and have realized that im flexible on most issues. Where does the RPGC community stand on this? I am most looking foreward to see if Sin has anything to say and where he stands.
You know what would give us a lot of money, and make the tax burden on most people better? If we taxed churches, synagogues, and other places of worship.
If your talking about the stimulus bill so much stuff was snuck in there because they gave them only a little bit of time to read the whole bill that it counter acts gaining money. Its going to put alot of small buisness’s out of buisness. Plus it would give us money if taxed churches and things like that but we can’t on account of seperation of church and state.
I’m not talking about the stimulus bill, I’m talking about taxing places of worship. And if you really want to “seperate church and state,” then tax it like any other non-profit. By showing bias towards religious institutions, I hardly see that as a sign of seperation.
The major point of these protests is to complain about taxation, but taxes haven’t really been higher or lower compared to past years. It’s just a kind of fad to complain about it now because it has higher impact during the recession.
That is unsurprising, considering the fact that the “tea parties” are a fake astroturf campaign created by a right-wing think tank called FreedomWorks, which has been previously busted for fake grass-roots campaigns. The entire movement “suddenly” materialized out of thin air, with a whole slew of well-designed websites (owned by previously unheard-of nonprofit organizations) and well-organized PR, just a couple of hours after Rick Santelli attacked Obama’s bailout plan on CNBC. The physical protests in February were small and intended purely as TV fodder; they may be more successful, though, if the organization is successful at luring a wider sample of people and channeling their dissatisfaction for its own purposes.
I did not vote for Obama, and I am very skeptical about the bailout. But FreedomWorks had nothing to say when Obama proposed to bail out the fraudulent banks. They got angry only when Obama proposed to give money to homeowners about to undergo foreclosure. The reason, of course, is because they want to draw people’s anger away from the banks in the wake of the AIG bonus scandal, and redirect that anger at the government. Their opinion is of no value, and conveniently avoids any discussion of the real problems at the heart of the crisis.
It’s a quote from McCulloch v. Maryland. McCulloch was technically about state governments taxing federal buildings (federal bank, I think).
Anyway, separation of church and state is only one of… I want to say four theories on how to interpret the Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses. Without even getting into establishment issues, it could be argued that taxation can lead to the “prohibit[ion of] the free exercise thereof.” Namely, reduction in church funds which would to a reduction in church functions etc.
Besides, you’d be hard pressed to argue that churches are “for profit.” They differ IMMENSELY from for profit companies such as GM or Ma and Pa’s General Store. Churches are essentially no different from a political party except in the area of society they try to get you to vote for, and I believe parties are tax exempt.
When I worked for AT&T, we had all sorts of churches setting up satellite television (internet I can understand, but not TV). If they were taxed, then perhaps they would spend the funds they receive a little more wisely. Furthermore, most churches aren’t run like businesses. You’re absolutely correct. But then you have groups like Scientology and the televangelists’ churches from the 80s and early 90s, and they definitely are/were more financially than spiritually motivated. It’s either tax all religious organizations, or tax none of them. We can’t pick and choose which ones we want to tax. And so I think it’s most fair to tax all of them.
You mean like a tithe? I don’t know. I’ve never been officially part of a church. Not once in my life. I know that Scientology charges a whole hell of a lot of money just to be a MEMBER of their “Church,” and then more money at each tier.
Establishment Clause pretty much prohibits the government from creating a church-support tax. That would be clear and direct support to a church for a reason that’s not a compelling state interest.
If taxes are not high now, they will be. About the media, it’s so biased it’s disgusting. What I don’t like is that these politicians were voted in but they do whatever they wish. They are suppose to work for us not themselves. Did the majority of americans want the stimulus bill? Probably not.
