Maslow's Political Blog

The census is derived from the following clause in the constitution:  “Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective Number… The actual Enumeration shall be made within three Years after the first Meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent Term of ten Years, in such Manner as they shall by Law direct.” Basically, the purpose is to make sure the number of representatives in the House is still sufficient, and that taxes are distributed to areas that need them.  If an area has, say, 100 more kids than it did 10 years ago, then more money needs to be sent to the public schools to pay for more teachers.  Without the census, there'd be no official way of knowing. The census has only those two purposes and can't be used for anything else.  Only the U.S. Census Bureau has access to the forms (though the statistical results are publis...

I'd like to draw your attention to the sign at the top of this picture, in between the two arrows.  I'd like to suggest the answer is, must be, no.  No, no no no and no.  No, you can't, and no, there's no rational argument that you can.  The only time you can get away with not paying taxes is by leaving the country.  Because simply by living in a community protected by a police department means you benefit from tax dollars.  What would Tea Party-ers say to Americans who would refuse to pay taxes in protest of the Iraq/Afghanistan wars?  This just cannot be done.  See Stranger than Fiction: You get audited, and you will lose. Taxes pay for: Police, Fire Fighters, Military, Medicare/Medicaid, Public Schools, Street Signs, Coast Guard, Road Maintenence, Welfare, Social Security, Public Campaign, Finance, NOAA (which tracks the weather), Customs, FBI, CIA, Courtrooms, Prisons, Garbage Collection, Nuclear Weapon Upkeep/Security, Foreign Ai...

Welcome friends! In high school I had what I suppose could be called a personal blog. Then in college I had a philosophical blog. And now it is time to throw my hat into the world of political blogs. I'll be chiefly writing on American domestic politics and American-Israeli relations, but I suppose I say that mostly because those are the most urgent things on my mind now. In a few weeks, I'm sure I'll be covering something else. I'm not going to be reporting any news, but I'll summarize whatever news story I'm talking about for those who perhaps haven't heard yet. In general, my information is from NPR, Colbert Report, Daily Show and/or The Boston Globe. I'll mostly be giving my perspective on the news, not for the sake of getting my voice out there, but in the hope of putting some fresh light on an issue, or bringing up an idea I don't think is being investigated. I hope to stay relevant and interesting and please tell me if it sounds I'm beco...