Taxation with Representation

In May 1764, Samuel Adams of Boston drafted the following:

"For if our Trade may be taxed why not our Lands? Why not the Produce of our Lands & every thing we possess or make use of? This we apprehend annihilates our Charter Right to govern & tax ourselves - It strikes our British Privileges, which as we have never forfeited them, we hold in common with our Fellow Subjects who are Natives of Britain: If Taxes are laid upon us in any shape without our having a legal Representation where they are laid, are we not reduced from the Character of free Subjects to the miserable State of tributary Slaves."

Sam Adams was writing of the proposed Stamp Tax that the British Parliament wanted to impose upon the colonies to help pay for the debt the government incurred during the seven years war. This act by the English government roused the ire of the colonists. Thus making the 1761 phrase of James Otis "Taxation without representation is Tyranny" a popular clarion call.

So here we are, two hundred and forty six years later, with our own sovereign government and nation. We have elected representatives and officials at the state and federal level who we afford the power to impose taxes and fees upon us. Yet I ask, is the Tyranny of taxation WITH representation any less baneful than that without? Are we really represented as a people when it comes to this most odious of government necessities?

As I look at the daunting task of Maine's Legislature and the remarkable shortfall in the budget I am left with little doubt as to what their solution will be. They will propose and impose new taxes upon the citizenry. Oh there will be a few cuts to overinflated budgets, but that; we will hear "will not be enough to make up the difference". For our own good, those who we elected shall, with much thought and deliberation, tax us all once again.

For thirty years we have seen naught but a "Tax and Spend" philosophy coming from the halls of Augusta. We have witnessed the systematic dismantling of our industries through over regulation, and thusly the destruction of our economy. The paper, dairy, and now fishing enterprises of this state have been under constant assault by the very same "Representatives" who we elect year after year. Is this really representation? To have a government elected by the people only to have the people's industry and business ruined by those in office?

I think not!

And if one is in doubt as to my assertion that representation here in Maine is but a farce, one need cast their mind no further back than last year. That was when the citizens banded together and rejected the Beer, Wine, and Soda tax through a Peoples Veto referendum. If the elected really cared about the impact of added fees and taxes upon the citizenry, would they have proposed such a nonsensical plan as this in the first place? Of course they wouldn't, but as you the voter entered into their thoughts only as a subject on whom they were to impose their will, they chose to suggest taxes that would further only their own agendas.

Yet, we as citizens, allow this nonsense to continue, it matters not from where you come, be it the northern reaches of Aroostook County or the southern flatlands of Cumberland County, we all have a hand in creating this mess. Through apathy, greed, malice and all the other dark aspects of man's nature we have transformed the face of this fair state forever.

To no good end I might add.

We the people, through our representatives, I use the term loosely, have come up with schemes to tax our trade, our lands, our produce and everything we make use of, just as Sam Adams feared. And though we have "Taxation with Representation", I believe fully that we are becoming but the tributary slaves of which he spoke.

Am I being fair, forthright, or simply radical? I know not myself. What I do know is that I am not alone in my understanding of the political situation and the budget. That for far too long have we as citizens allowed the intellectual elite to rule us with arrogance and indifference and it is our responsibility to change this pattern.

The only solution to the problem of our current situation, is to remove from office all those who have lost touch with the realities of everyday life here in Maine and the nation, then try to elect those persons of good character who, will foster a more business and tax friendly environment. We can no longer afford to allow ourselves to be led by the self seeking or self indulgent; our wallets are far too thin for that. Let's rid ourselves once and for all of the old familiar faces, old familiar phrases, and promote prosperity over bondage.

A slave, be he in chains of iron or of paper, is always but a slave.

Sláinte
Allen R Butler