[MD] Sin Part 1

[Case]

> [Case]
> I think you confuse cowardice with insanity. Insanity is doing the same
> thing over and over and expecting a different result. After Korea,
> Vietnam and the Russian experience in Afghanistan you would think we
> would learn.

[Platt]
Learn what? To cut and run?

[Case]
Obviously we have learned very little from our past experience. This might
lead one to question the sanity of our leaders. But if experience is any
guide what we do is declare victory and leave. You can call it cutting and
running if you like but it doesn't sound as butch.

> [Case]
> No it is a pact between the government and it's citizens and it
> guarantees all who come under its domain the protection of due process.

[Platt]
No. You wrote the key word -- "citizens." Not "all."

[Case]
You are correct but I also was careful to say "all who come under its
domain." One does not have to be a citizen to enjoy the benefits of its
legal protections. In this country as a general rule we have regarded our
legal principles as moral principles and apply the due process of law to all
who come under its domain.

>[Case]
> What is suicidal is compromising that sacred pact for any reason. If we
> can do it to That Man we can do it to Any Man. If terrorists are guilty
> of something then let's charge and punish them. The law provides for
> that.

[Platt]
If terrorists are guilty of something? A wonderful oxymoron.

[Case]
You are correct again. For the sake of brevity I fell into the propaganda
trap of the Bush administration. For the sake of convenience I was willing
to charge, try and sentence That Man with a single word. I admit that that
was a heinous thing to do. But my point was; we have no way of knowing what
these men are or are not since they have not been charged. I don't believe
they are even classified as prisoners of war. What "we the people" are doing
in these cases is a gross violation of our own legal and moral principles.
It has not gone unnoticed in the international community either. Check this
out:
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1557842,00.html
 

[Platt]
I do vote for people who share my views. But, you failed to address the 
question. If taxes aren't collected by the threat of force, why not 
make them voluntary?

[Case]
I thought I made this point clear but I can expand on it if it will help.
Taxes are assessed and collected on things that we own and money that we
earn. I am unaware of any tax that can be levied against a citizen who does
not own anything or who does not earn an income. Furthermore there is no law
that I am aware of that requires a citizen to own anything or to earn an
income. Taxes are matters of law. The threat of force is used to enforce the
law. So if a citizen elects to participate in the capitalist system and
seeks the government's power to protect her private property rights, she
must follow the laws that apply. 

The tax laws like any law can be modified so long as they are in keeping
with the general principles set forth in the constitution. Even the
constitution can be amended through our system. If you think taxes should be
voluntary then run for congress. Run for a local government office. Just
vote. You have this right to participate in the legislative process whether
you own property and pay taxes or not.

I think I have addressed this issue. I have said that there is no law
requiring a citizen to participate in the economic system. Absent
participation there is nothing to tax. But if you do chose as a free man to
participate, you will fall under the laws agreed upon by free men. If you
fail to follow the laws governing your participation, you can justly expect
the force of law to apply to you.


[Platt]
The government that protects and preserves intellectual freedom has 
every right to protect itself from those bent on destroying it. 

[Case]
Exactly so! And the same force of law that applies to suspected tax dodgers
applies to suspected terrorists. We have a system in place for determining
if evidence is sufficient to warrant a charge. We have a procedure in place
for conducting a trial to weigh the evidence. We have a method of
determining guilt or innocence. We have institution set up to mete out
justice to those found guilty.

It is generally referred to as "due process" and it applies to alleged tax
dodgers and terrorists equally.

[Platt]
"Rightfully does not" strip away property rights? What's to stop it?

[Case]
The will of the people.

> [Case]
> Capitalism is just the system our government currently uses to
> redistribute wealth.

[Platt]
You can't redistribute what hasn't been created.  Capitalism is a great
creative system. What gets "redistributed" under capitalism is done
voluntarily between traders. When government gets involved in
redistribution, out come the guns. 

[Case]
Capitalism is not the only system of economics under which goods and
services are produced. It could be argued that a system that does not
provide for the production of goods and services is not an economic system
at all. I thought all of the arguments expressed here were over the morality
of economic systems or the efficiency of economic systems. We use a
capitalist or mixed economic system in this country for reasons of morality
and efficiency as determined by law.

But the distribution of goods and services is a fundamental property of any
economic system and free men have at their disposal the means to change law
to favor whatever economic system suites them. The guns come out when
citizens violated the law. If too many guns are needed to enforce a law
perhaps it is time to reconsider the wisdom of the law.

[Platt}
I would prefer not giving government officials permission to 
"redistribute" my property to benefit another private party for the 
sake of increasing the tax base. That's obscene.  

[Case]
Oddly enough the power of eminent domain is granted to the federal
government by an amendment to the constitution. It is part of the Bill of
Rights. But then, it is included in the Fifth Amendment for which you have
already expressed such distain. But if you don't like it, we can change it
but only if we go through the lawful steps.