The Hydra Monster

The Hydra Monster (4/13/2011)

On Friday Americans will repeat the annual ritual of paying taxes. Local television stations will provide live coverage from postal offices near closing time; editorializing what we “must” do to pay our taxes. Obediently most all of her citizens will have complied and the monster of government will continue living, and regardless of attack she cannot be killed through starvation or even radical cuts. Valiantly some men are trying like Congressmen Ron Paul and Paul Ryan, but attempts to shut down the government and truly kill the monster to save future generations are met with mockery from the press and she continues to live.

Sadly, the Hydra Monster lives at all levels of our lives. We start with our paychecks by enslaving ourselves for the first three to four months of the year to pay Federal income tax (20%) and FICA (7.65%). Sadly, most people ignore the 7.65% raise they would receive if employers did not have to pay taxes “on their behalf.” In Georgia I have a state tax of approximately 3% and there are the other taxes my employer pays instead of paying me: SUTA and FUTA. Adding it all together nearly 40% of our paycheck is gone. In November most local municipalities seek property taxes on those who own real estate, amounts of $5-$15k are averages in Volusia County (let’s assume 10% of income). With every purchase comes sales tax: 6.5%. Adding everything together comes to 55% of earnings. Of course, there are countless fees and taxes on phones, internet, licenses, and registrations further driving up costs.

Taxes anger me because the Hydra Monster called government relentlessly feeds itself on the backs of all men and abusively spends the collected monies. At the national level the monster is so large the President readily acknowledged during his promotion of healthcare fraud and waste in Medicare comes to $1 billion, but the monster lives on. Locally governments build multi-million dollar firehouses on prime commercial property and create pension plans to allow productive citizens to withdraw from the workforce at early ages. In Nassau County, NY policeman earn $100k after five years and are entitled to hundreds of thousands in annual retirement benefits!

Our country is dying, consumed by the Hydra Monster. No matter how hard our heroes try to cut a head she will live on, breathing fire against her people, growing meaninglessly, and adding more heads to become ever more pervasive and invasive in our lives. Radical change is required to defeat the Hydra Monster, only banded together can she be killed. Paying taxes this week is a sad offering to the misery befalls man but will make the Monster stronger.