In Imperial Rome, only aristocrats and slaves where not taxed. As the middle-class was taxed out of existence, artisans and farmers sold themselves into slavery to escape their crushing tax burdens. Thus was born the medieval surf.
Simon
Bram,
Excellent!
Neil
It’s true–the Romans at one point even had a job description for people who went out looking for runaway middle-class people, to go “free” them from serfdom and restore them to their tax-paying jobs in the city.
The good thing is that the Roman experience has stuck with Western civilization. And so the power to tax is NOT unlimited, even with the ruling yesterday. Law and tradition bind the tax Gulliver with a thousand little threads. The SC has made it clear in the past that Congress does not have the power to tax unto destruction. A tax must be small enough to be payable–they can’t impose a tax for the purpose of forcing behavior. That’s one of the reasons the mandate could reasonably be a tax–it’s actually much cheaper to pay the tax than to buy the insurance (and thus, the whole thing is doomed to failure, but I digress).
The finding that it is a tax has procedural implications; Obamacare can be repealed in reconciliation, and repeal cannot be filibustered. The Republicans don’t have to win 60 Senate seats to get the job done. I don’t see where anyone has noticed this, but Scalia also pointed out in his dissent that there is the potential for another constitutional challenge to Obamacare. If the mandate penalty is a tax, then it would appear to be a capitation or poll tax, which is a form of direct tax. Direct taxes which are not based on income must be apportioned among the several states according to the most recent census (per Article 1, Sect 2, Cls 3). The 16th Amendment nullifies this requirement in the case of tax on income, but this tax arguably is not based on income.
It looks to me like Roberts’ decision was more Machiavelli than Souter. More judo than surrender. He insulated the court from the left’s claims of illegitimacy, but he laid landmines on the road to serfdom while issuing a challenge to the voters to take responsibility for their own decisions.
Simon
Neil,
Excellent!
Scott M
Neil, are you really expecting this GOP to withstand the media/DNC sh*t-storm claiming the GOP will take away your health care? Really? How many preemptive surrenders do the GOP leaders have to accomplish before people stop relying on the GOP to change? Until the GOP members like Boehner and David Drier are replaced they will fold over and over, even when they could win with a little effort.
You can’t insulate any non-Left entity from claims of illegitimacy. The Left routinely and dishonestly uses the charge (plus sexism, racism, classism) because the charge itself often works, facts notwithstanding. All the TV watchers will know is the DNC and media are claiming the GOP are heartless plutocrats trying to prevent grandma from some miracle cure and the GOP is denying being heartless Plutocrats. If the TV watchers don’t buy the media narrative they will simply assume the GOP are kinda heartless and kinda evil. None of them are going to analyze Constitutional background and caselaw.
Simon
Scott,
Hold their feet to the fire. Get this around:
==
The power to tax is the power to enslave.
For what are you willing to be a slave?
For what are you willing to enslave others?
Pass it on. Claim it as your own.
=====
You know how sensitive Americans are about slavery. Make them into slave masters if they dare relent.
Kathy Kinsley
Scot,
In short, yes. Americans have traditionally been far more resistant to New Taxes than to anything else. Even in California.
Oh, and Simon? Most of those “sensitive about slavery” would be quite happy to be slave masters. As long as they could give it another name…so call them what they are. And good luck.
I’m just going to start singing “We shall overcome.” And try to believe it.
Simon
Kathy,
I’m already taking incoming. It means I’m on target.
Neil
Scott,
I see a lot of people expressing your concerns, but you’re asking the Court for more than it can deliver.
Perhaps you didn’t notice, but the Left was out dancing in the streets over a ruling that gutted Progressive legal theory. Congress’ economic power is limited, which goes against everything they’ve claimed since 1936, and having celebrated it they have to accept that ruling as legitimate now. That’s why it was Machiavellian.
The courts can only do so much without the electorate behind them. If the president is re-elected and gets to appoint three leftist justices (Kennedy, Breyer, and Ginsberg retire), the Sebellius ruling is going to look like the golden age of conservatism. If Romney is elected and gets to appoint three justices, well, many things are possible.
Simon is right. This was an opening, and this November decides whether it is the high-water mark for freedom or just the beginning.
Comments
9 responses to “Slavery”
In Imperial Rome, only aristocrats and slaves where not taxed. As the middle-class was taxed out of existence, artisans and farmers sold themselves into slavery to escape their crushing tax burdens. Thus was born the medieval surf.
Bram,
Excellent!
It’s true–the Romans at one point even had a job description for people who went out looking for runaway middle-class people, to go “free” them from serfdom and restore them to their tax-paying jobs in the city.
The good thing is that the Roman experience has stuck with Western civilization. And so the power to tax is NOT unlimited, even with the ruling yesterday. Law and tradition bind the tax Gulliver with a thousand little threads. The SC has made it clear in the past that Congress does not have the power to tax unto destruction. A tax must be small enough to be payable–they can’t impose a tax for the purpose of forcing behavior. That’s one of the reasons the mandate could reasonably be a tax–it’s actually much cheaper to pay the tax than to buy the insurance (and thus, the whole thing is doomed to failure, but I digress).
The finding that it is a tax has procedural implications; Obamacare can be repealed in reconciliation, and repeal cannot be filibustered. The Republicans don’t have to win 60 Senate seats to get the job done. I don’t see where anyone has noticed this, but Scalia also pointed out in his dissent that there is the potential for another constitutional challenge to Obamacare. If the mandate penalty is a tax, then it would appear to be a capitation or poll tax, which is a form of direct tax. Direct taxes which are not based on income must be apportioned among the several states according to the most recent census (per Article 1, Sect 2, Cls 3). The 16th Amendment nullifies this requirement in the case of tax on income, but this tax arguably is not based on income.
It looks to me like Roberts’ decision was more Machiavelli than Souter. More judo than surrender. He insulated the court from the left’s claims of illegitimacy, but he laid landmines on the road to serfdom while issuing a challenge to the voters to take responsibility for their own decisions.
Neil,
Excellent!
Neil, are you really expecting this GOP to withstand the media/DNC sh*t-storm claiming the GOP will take away your health care? Really? How many preemptive surrenders do the GOP leaders have to accomplish before people stop relying on the GOP to change? Until the GOP members like Boehner and David Drier are replaced they will fold over and over, even when they could win with a little effort.
You can’t insulate any non-Left entity from claims of illegitimacy. The Left routinely and dishonestly uses the charge (plus sexism, racism, classism) because the charge itself often works, facts notwithstanding. All the TV watchers will know is the DNC and media are claiming the GOP are heartless plutocrats trying to prevent grandma from some miracle cure and the GOP is denying being heartless Plutocrats. If the TV watchers don’t buy the media narrative they will simply assume the GOP are kinda heartless and kinda evil. None of them are going to analyze Constitutional background and caselaw.
Scott,
Hold their feet to the fire. Get this around:
==
The power to tax is the power to enslave.
For what are you willing to be a slave?
For what are you willing to enslave others?
Pass it on. Claim it as your own.
=====
You know how sensitive Americans are about slavery. Make them into slave masters if they dare relent.
Scot,
In short, yes. Americans have traditionally been far more resistant to New Taxes than to anything else. Even in California.
Oh, and Simon? Most of those “sensitive about slavery” would be quite happy to be slave masters. As long as they could give it another name…so call them what they are. And good luck.
I’m just going to start singing “We shall overcome.” And try to believe it.
Kathy,
I’m already taking incoming. It means I’m on target.
Scott,
I see a lot of people expressing your concerns, but you’re asking the Court for more than it can deliver.
Perhaps you didn’t notice, but the Left was out dancing in the streets over a ruling that gutted Progressive legal theory. Congress’ economic power is limited, which goes against everything they’ve claimed since 1936, and having celebrated it they have to accept that ruling as legitimate now. That’s why it was Machiavellian.
The courts can only do so much without the electorate behind them. If the president is re-elected and gets to appoint three leftist justices (Kennedy, Breyer, and Ginsberg retire), the Sebellius ruling is going to look like the golden age of conservatism. If Romney is elected and gets to appoint three justices, well, many things are possible.
Simon is right. This was an opening, and this November decides whether it is the high-water mark for freedom or just the beginning.