Christian Right And Taxes

[debrand]

Lately, I've come across several Christians who are very passionate about taxes being theft. Their viewpoints counter their own religious text where Jesus said to basically pay taxes.

It is as if the right does not understand that taxes pay for war(they all are gung ho about war), roads, schools, or ER visits that they can't afford to pay. What is even more ironic is that I know some of these people have been on welfare.

My husband works with a guy who takes out the maximum dependents that he can for his paycheck because he doesn't want the government using his taxes. Yet, he has to pay money in when he files his taxes. No amount of trying to explain that his reasoning makes no sense seems to faze him.

What is their goal? Do they want America to become a weak country where all the roads are unpaved and there is no police force? Sometimes I wish that there was a place for these people to go and try to set up their ideal world.

I don't understand how they can read Jesus' words and believe that they aren't called upon to help the poor.

[FlorenceHamilton]

I always claim zero dependents. This way, I rarely need to pay a chunk of money to the government that I may not have at the time. Often I get a chunk of money back. It forces me to keep my lifestyle smaller and pays me a benefit in the end.

[User123456]

Don't do this...."claim zero dependents"...You are giving the government free loan of your money and not recieving on red cent in interest. At least at the bank you get some interest...a single red cent but it is something.

Try to estimate your taxes and file your withholding so that you will come close, but not overpay the IRS. You want to own something on April 15th. Put some of your current tax refund into a savings account to pay what you own next year and don't touch it.

Normally, we come within about 1000USD each year. If you get an unexpected windfall, you can always budget pay on a quarterly basis an estimated tax to cover the extra.

[Wolfie]

It isn't dependents that you are claiming on your forms for taxes being withheld, it's exemptions- because you're supposed to take into account what deductions you are able to take and so on. I try to come as close to about $1000 as possible. I have some small businesses on the side so I leave more from my main job to cover the little income that I get from them. YES, if you sell stuff online it's still taxable income- you can deduct all your expenses from it, but you need to deduct the income too!

ETA- I've seen the far right complain and complain, yet they'd prefer everbody else to not get the same deductions as they do. They make no sense.

[debrand]

It isn't dependents that you are claiming on your forms for taxes being withheld, it's exemptions- because you're supposed to take into account what deductions you are able to take and so on. I try to come as close to about $1000 as possible. I have some small businesses on the side so I leave more from my main job to cover the little income that I get from them. YES, if you sell stuff online it's still taxable income- you can deduct all your expenses from it, but you need to deduct the income too!

ETA- I've seen the far right complain and complain, yet they'd prefer everbody else to not get the same deductions as they do. They make no sense.

You are correct. We were military for a long time so I got the terms, dependents and exemptions, confused. :oops:

The far right seems crazier this year. I can understand the appreciation for low taxes, I don't understand seeing all taxation as theft. Paying teachers and meat inspectors is a good thing.

[Kishiria]

Don't do this...."claim zero dependents"...You are giving the government free loan of your money and not recieving on red cent in interest. At least at the bank you get some interest...a single red cent but it is something.

Try to estimate your taxes and file your withholding so that you will come close, but not overpay the IRS. You want to own something on April 15th. Put some of your current tax refund into a savings account to pay what you own next year and don't touch it.

Normally, we come within about 1000USD each year. If you get an unexpected windfall, you can always budget pay on a quarterly basis an estimated tax to cover the extra.

This is my household's philosophy. We usually get a refund, but it's tiny.

Not only did Jesus say to pay taxes, he showed to Peter that the Lord would provide what was needed for taxes when they found the fish with the coin in its mouth for the Temple tax. Even Jesus paid his taxes.

[FlorenceHamilton]

I am aware about the interest thing. I am only able to take one exemption and with the low interest rates we currently have, the forced savings is better for me. It is something I would consider in inflationary times when interest rates are high.

[bananacat]

I had a conservative boss who hated paying taxes. He simply refused to see the benefits that he personally had from paying taxes. He was an intelligent man, but he just refused to see what he was getting for his money. I think he was just really full of himself and felt like he was entitled all sort of things simply for existing as the awesome white man that he was, so OF COURSE he should get roads and schools and parks and safe food without having to pay for it. And yet, he complained that people who wanted universal health care had "entitlement issues". He was clearly projecting. And the most ridiculous thing? We worked for a defense contractor and government agencies (mostly at the federal level) were our only customers. Yes, his entire salary was paid for in tax dollars.

[Witsec7]

I hear this a lot from southern white IFB folks on forum I post on. They come from a red state that actually gets more from the feds than what they pay. The cities and counties in their state are going bankrupt. They get billions in disaster funding, superfund site clean up and programs to help their poor and undereducated. Their schools fail miserably. The states infrastructure is rotting away. And these folks complain whatever amount they render to caesar is too much and illegal. A majority faction of these folks are tenthers, firm advocates for states rights and independence from the feds. Shit these folks are almost living in a third world nation already, just what the hell do they think will happen in their state if they didn't get their federal monies?

[Elle]

Good lord, no wonder these people and the super-wealthy get along so well. Both think that they shouldn't have to pay taxes at all but still get the benefit of all that taxes pay for. A lot of the fundies don't use public schools, but they benefit from infrastructure, and those who provide them with services more than likely had some public schooling, meaning public schools indirectly benefit them. If they're bitching about paying taxes at all, even though most of them probably make bank with how many kids they can claim, getting back MORE than they paid, then there's not a chance any of them would willingly give a dime.

But if there was prayer mandated in schools, they'd probably be in favor of laws forcing all kids to go to public schools and be okay paying taxes for that.

[Arete]

In addition to their resentment of rendering unto Caesar, they also forget the fact that doing for the least of their brothers and sisters is the same as doing it for Jesus. I remember that list being pretty specific, clothing the naked, feeding the hunger, visiting the prisoners, etc. But hey, that list and the command to pay taxes are just words actually attributed to Jesus. There are so many more IMPORTANT parts of the Bible for the Christian Right. :roll: