They made physical transfers of money. My great-grandfather had a stagecoach line that ran between Los Angeles and San Antonio, and on every trip the stage carried chests of gold being transferred from one bank to another.

Aye, there's the rub!

Yes! Except I would have them repeal 80%. And no new laws could be passed until the committee's work is done.

I had to get chantix to quit smoking, and now with
emphysema, I just pace myself. . it works. -- j

LOL! Great point. And it wouldn't be the average taxpayer paying for all those prisons and their construction. Who WOULD be paying for them?

Several of us also picked up nasty shocks when neighboring benches' 'grounds' might not have been at the same potential... or even on the same phases or whatever. Ah, those were fun times...

It's odd how they are dazed for a few seconds. I guess that's why flash-bangs work.

20 years ago I touched a grounded iron to a trace floating at 220VAC. It was "ground" on the board, and we tend to think of anything labelled "ground" as this mythical net of 0 V with respect to the universe. It went BANG, burnt some traces, and suddenly three people were standing by me saying "are you okay?" I must have lost a few seconds. Now I never take an iron to a powered board now, and I don't use the word "ground" except to mean a current path where current flows in a fault condition. Otherwise is it's power supply return, or signal return.

No kidding! Two guys were working on a power inverter in our lab one day and the full bridge they'd put across the incoming AC line failed. Apparently, it failed faster than any circuit breaker in the facility and it sounded like a big bore gun going off.

We ran to the lab to make sure they were ok (they were.. the explosion was contained under the chassis they were working on) but they couldn't hear anything we said to them for something like a half hour! They, like me, but for other reasons, probably are wearing hearing aids today.

:)

Term limits to end political dynasties. One and done.

I've never heard that idea before. Thank you.

Even if we eliminated deductions, working out a business's income is still complicated. Maybe they could make it distirubtions pluse W-2 payments you receive-- no tax on retained earnings. In any case, none of this is related to marginal rates. You could do all of this with progressive marginal rates, or you could do a single flat rate and not eliminate deductions. They're not linked.

And just think how many jobs would be created to build prisons to house 300 million people!

If my bad habits don't make me too sick to do it, I hope at least semi-retire at some point and get a small airplane with a ham radio in it.

Those who lose their focus on true and useful objectives!

Very good. Fear overwhelms so very many!

I retired just as BHO was winning the election, and
promptly went on vacation to Alaska, wearing my
Palin button. . they liked it up there. -- j

p.s. retirement IS all it's made out to be, if you
don't give in -- became a ham, traded Harleys,
editing books, all kinds of fun!

I know that I have never, either via words spoken or written, consented to being governed, nor would I deliberately do so. The best part of being governed is merely the pretense that it is O.K. as long as we call ourselves "free". The worst part of being governed will be when total and craven and cruel tyranny sets in - and it has a good start already. The only ones who stand a chance of not being touched by the cruel tyranny that IS ON ITS WAY are those who are the tyrants. How can so many not realize this? I think it is because to recognize it for what it is requires making some very difficult decisions, decisions we don't have the guts to make. What say everyone?

Thank you for stepping up to the plate!

I've said this often but will repeat again, my friend. "Greed" is an inappropriate slam, because it has it's limits. The dictionary definition for "Greed" is "excessive or rapacious desire, especially for wealth or possessions." In short, that is "desire". Folks will have their own opinion of what might be "excessive or rapacious" but so far as I know, there's nothing illegal about greed. However, when acting upon one's greed becomes theft, extortion, bribery or corruption, then one has a problem both moral and legal . Those wrongs are true of at least some politicians, right? That politicians supposedly are representing the People is a fallacy indeed. The real problem is with governments of force, which is ALL governments! GOVERNments can and do use Force, while we lowly slaves will be prosecuted for those crimes. This makes governments-all criminal by definition, and surely that makes most politicians criminal as well.

I submit that there be not a lone "citizen" who has specifically consented to be GOVERNed, which makes that a major breach of every part of contract common law. Just because some of our ancestors over 200 years ago wrote their words of tyranny on paper does not make any of that binding upon their children, does it? Any contract exists only by the agreement of two or more parties!

I also have much to say about taxes. I've not filed a 1040 in about 25 years now, without repercussion in any way. We know others who are ditto. Point -- "There is no Law!". Not filing is NOT the same as committing fraud by filing a false 1040 -- yes for that you can expect to be prosecuted.. Having done considerable research on the matter and published many findings, here are some: http://no-ruler.net/?s=tax+resistance.

Finally, it should be obvious that the only way to prevent absolute tyranny is to NEVER opt to be GOVERNed. That the horde of humans have allowed themselves to be Ruled by the motley Few who become Rulers from the beginnings of history is a paradox indeed.

Thank you for making some sense. I'll ask you once again to carefully re-read my comment. I'm saying that we are heading into the Inevitable Global Great Collapse. Can that be merely somewhere in the distant future?

Therefore, while there are many "starting points" with merit listed here, how many "fixes" do we get our Rulers to institute before this planet is hit with that Inevitable Great Collapse? We are seeing "NONE" -- WE have NO role in the so-called Balance of Powers! I am reminded of a line within the song "Old Man River" -- they're "Out A'makin' More" ... every day, and 98% of the 2012 voters fell for that! So much for brainwashing negating rationality!

History is replete with the failures of Rulers and their governments, empires, kingdoms... Always those had, and used, Force against their Subject/Slaves... those captives whom they so kindly call "Citizens" who shall be "Patriots"... right or wrong matters not. The bottom line is that most humans are Ruled by whom? Other humans who somehow are deemed to be superior elites.

Thus I say "Bring On the Collapse", which will in a way be the Galt's Gulch fantasize over. Frankly, I believe that this is your ONE solution! The question will then be, "Will the survivors have the rationale and the courage to never again opt to be GOVERNed!"

I can see your point. Just need to make that final hump into retirement, making sure my son is on track with all that he needs as he starts his new family. Thanks, though.

My single thing would be to have a committee formed, headed by Dr. Paul, whose task is to repeal laws at the Federal level. The committee would be disbanded when they have repealed 50% of the laws on the books. (Until such disbandment, all legislators and elected executive branch people would have their paychecks suspended, to encourage their support of this project.)

Fix it, hand it back, and watch it destroy itself again. Giving it back is a mistake. If given to anyone, it should be to the taxpayers, NOT the people who steal from the taxpayers.

This is a good idea and I'm on-board with it, but I would suggest that you give them the 5K now instead of after you're gone. This has the advantage of you getting to see what they do with it, and they can probably use it now more than they will be able to later. (And yes, I've donated to them personally.)

LOL! I would say that no taxpayer should file an IRS form. If no one did, would the governnent throw all of us in jail? It may confiscate everything we own. So then we could be a massive squatter community throughout the entire country.

Look at it another way. If they DID throw us in jail, for a change all of us would benefit by seeing a worthwhile use of OUR tax dollars. We would be given free room and board, free meals, free medical care , free clothing, and virtually no real responsibilities. It would be the FIRST time I would see any good come of the dollars I've wasted by sending them to the federal government.