For as long as most of our readers can remember April 15th has been a deeply dreaded date. A large portion of this hatred comes from the fat that on this date they are forced to see their hard earned money taken from them in the blink of an eye. This however isn’t the only reason the date invokes a feeling of uneasiness deep in the pit of our nations stomach. No, that arises from the plethora of intricate laws regarding what is/isn’t tax deductible. This dread has caused Americans to branch into two main categories 1) pay the full percentage of your income tax out of fear you will make an excessive deduction and will be audited. 2) pay a tax group to uncover minute and wordy laws in order to ensure every penny that can be deducted legally is.

However, this year I, in conjunction with Senator Harry Reid, plan on making things a hell of a lot easier for the average American.


That’s right, according to Harry Reid taxes are voluntary. So in the coming weeks as you fill out your tax forms, feel free to deduct the full amount of your income. In that little box that questions the reason for such a large deduction, simply write in “Harry Reid Voluntary Tax Rule”. (See disclaimer at the bottom of the page).

If this wasn’t a video of a high powered government official in charge of millions of dollars and millions of lives, it might actually be comical. Regardless of whether or not you approve of the welfare programs being discussed in the video, you should be able to acknowledge Reid’s thick as a brick, blatant ignorance, or his flat out lie. According to Reid (for those too lazy to watch the video), because the government allows us to fill out our own tax forms, we are volunteering when we fill out said forms. Reid argues that in other countries, taxes are automatically deducted from all profits, thus ignoring two things. 1) It is impossible for even the most intrusive government (short of one based on Orwell’s 1984) to learn of the average private transaction, let alone properly tax it. 2) Companies often withhold wages (Google Adsense) until a W2 (or other appropriate tax form) is filed out. As Jan Helfen points out, the government is graciously giving the option of prison or payment. Again you may agree with the current tax system and believe that taxes are what keep our country running. However to claim that we can choose not pay taxes is absurd. Just because you can sit on this portion of your income for eleven months before it is reposed, doesn’t make it volunteer work or charity when you finally pay.

Disclaimer: Not paying taxes or deducted 100% of your income via the Harry Reid rule or any of its variants, will result in an audit, prison, fine or other government sanction. If you choose to not file taxes be aware you are practicing civil disobedience and you will pay the price (and possibly reap the rewards of drawing attention to your belief system).

If you were interested in this article may I also suggest this video: Watch as Nancy Pelosi tries to explain why she is able to pay staffers below minimum wage, but someone desperate for a job at McDonalds (or any other low-skilled job) in tough economic times cannot offer their labor cheaper in order secure one of the limited number of jobs available.