Political Paranoia

[vovat]

I voted yesterday, but I guess it didn't do much good, as Chris Christie won the gubernatorial race. I'll admit I didn't do a whole lot of research going into this election, but looking at his positions on issues doesn't exactly fill me with hope. He's opposed to gay marriage, in favor of destroying the wetlands, and apparently favors parents in poor school districts using state money to send their kids to private schools (as opposed to, y'know, improving the public schools themselves). Oh, and he was a lobbyist. Great. But much more disappointing was the result of the election in Maine, where the bigots came out in force to oppose gay marriage. Why does this issue keep being put to the vote? It's a civil rights issue, and those are too important to leave up to the majority. But morality doesn't seem to be of much significance in the country today. Just look at all the opposition to universal health care, for instance. Why isn't a reasonable level of health care considered a moral right? Well, you have a lot of corporate lobbies trying to convince people it isn't, and they're obviously doing a good job. We can't underestimate the power of telling people that something will result in Higher Taxes, though, as if "Taxes" were one single figure rather than the results of many different factors. That's not to say that the expense isn't a significant concern, but I think some issues are more important than money. Besides, despite being in debt, the government apparently still has enough money to bribe other countries. Funny, that. Also kind of funny, if you look at it in the right light, is the idea that there are businesses based pretty much entirely around finding excuses not to pay for things. And these businesses are some of the most powerful entities in the country.

With universal health care, though, I can understand some of the arguments against it, and it's incredibly obvious why certain corporate interests would be against it. With gay marriage, though...not so much. You'd think the corporate lobbies would be in favor of it because marriage of any kind is incredibly profitable. Disney got on board with that, so why don't other corporations want to? I've considered the possibility that the insurance companies might be behind this one as well, since more marriages could mean having to insure more people. While there's some logic there, though, it strikes me as rather convoluted and indirect. No, while that might be a factor, it's primarily religious groups that are driving the anti-gay-marriage campaign. I have to suspect there's more to it than just "the Bible says," though (especially since the Bible DOESN'T say; it says to stone gay men to death, but doesn't address whether they should be allowed to get married). The rank and file of homophobic voters might be convinced that it has something to do with keeping people out of Hell, but what do the leaders want? I tend to hold to the idea that winning battles like that is a way for the fundamentalists to get their foot in the door to enact other, potentially more significant legislation. Some particularly tactless religious leaders have made no bones about the fact that they essentially want to rule the world, or at least have someone on their side doing so. I don't necessarily think it's some vast conservative Christian conspiracy at work (although that might be a stronger possibility than it would seem at first glance, what with The Family and all), but I do think banning gay marriage is a means to further ends, even if the average conservative voter doesn't know it.

That brings me to another point I've been thinking about recently, which is that the government really should start taxing churches. As with the other issues, this is basically the case of a tradition that favors the powerful continuing unabated. A lot of churches have convinced people to just flat-out give them ten percent of their gross income, and then will ask for donations on top of that. Of course, if someone WANTS to do that, it's their choice. But there are religious leaders trying to convince people that they're horrible if they don't tithe, even if they can't afford it (which, based on what the Bible teaches elsewhere, presumably means these people should be RECEIVING money, not giving it). Pretty much everyone else who's in business to make money gets taxed, so why do religious institutions get a free pass? Yes, many churches do charitable work, but I don't see why a church's charitable enterprises couldn't be set up as a separate non-profit. I suppose the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation doesn't need to pay taxes, but that doesn't make Microsoft tax-exempt. Would I feel differently on this subject if I were religious myself? I guess I don't really know, but I kind of suspect not. Agreeing with the basic doctrines of a religion doesn't have to mean buying into whatever the leaders say, after all.

Comments

[dragonxbait.livejournal.com]

Tom and I have had this discussion as well, Re- the tax status of church. We give a quite healthy amount to our church (not 10%, more like 1%, but it is not insignificant) and not only does the church not pay taxes on the donation, we also get a tax deduction as an incentive to give. I guess the original idea was so that the government would not enact tax code that specifically persecutes religious groups. If they were taxed like other corporations, or taxed on their non charitable spending maybe? Our church does spend quite a bit on social justice issues such as the food pantry that we run and other local charities that we support. And I think the unitarian religious education program is outstanding (one of the big reasons we attend and choose to support the church financially) and schools are not taxed. All that said, if our church had to pay property taxes on the large plot of land on the town green in a pricey Boston suburb, there is no way we would be able to stay in business. That alone would probably close our doors. We had been providing housing to our sexton in the parish house, as part of his salary package and the town decided that made the parish house taxable (since it was not being used for a church specific use) and we had to evict the sexton. We literally could not balance our budget if we had to pay those taxes. I think a lot of churches with small congregations in old historic church's would face this issue if their property was taxable. I am not sure if that alone is reason for the government to essentially continue subsidizing them, but it is something to think about.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

If they were taxed like other corporations, or taxed on their non charitable spending maybe?

Yeah, that sounds pretty fair.

All that said, if our church had to pay property taxes on the large plot of land on the town green in a pricey Boston suburb, there is no way we would be able to stay in business. That alone would probably close our doors.

Well, I wouldn't imagine that all churches would be taxed at the same rate, any more than businesses would.

[dragonxbait.livejournal.com]

Also, I never ralized this until I was marrie to someone in a much higher tax bracket than I had ever inhabited, but tax deductions (like for charitable giving) benefit the wealthy more than the poor. It seems like if we want to incentivize charitable giving it would be more fair if you got x% of the donation taken off the top of your tax burden, possibly up to a certain allowable amount. The way it is now, it reduces your taxable income- which reduces your taxes by a much greater amount if you make 100k vs 30k, for the same donation amount. I kind of hate tax code.

[travspence.livejournal.com]

I am a huge fan of the separation of church and state and I am not in favor of taxing churches. For one thing, rich churches already have too much political clout for my liking. Imagine them getting their magic underwear in a knot if they paid taxes. "We don't our tax dollars supporting blasphemous art! We don't want our tax dollars funding a congress that would allow gays to marry! We want our tax dollars to go toward building a golden city for Jesus to live in when he comes back!" It's a very bad idea, giving churches even more political leverage.

The separation of church and state has to be enforced in all directions, in my opinion. Gotta keep 'em separated. As the saying goes, keep religion out of government, schools, and work. Keep it at home, church, and in the heart.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

Imagine them getting their magic underwear in a knot if they paid taxes. "We don't our tax dollars supporting blasphemous art! We don't want our tax dollars funding a congress that would allow gays to marry! We want our tax dollars to go toward building a golden city for Jesus to live in when he comes back!"

That's a good point, and I hadn't really thought of that. Of course, they already petition the government for those things NOW, even without paying taxes.

[yosef.livejournal.com]

I think you're being a bit lax over homosexual marriage. Don't you realize that if that had happened in Maine, your own marriage would have been made to be on the same level as... homosexuals!!! Also, you would have been instantly divorced, because the gays are just that tricky.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

Yes, but it all would be worth it if I got to see my wife participate in some lesbian action! :P