Government Schooling is Welfare

I wonder if I’ll ever get to a point where I’m no longer burdened with trying to convince people that government – the State – is force. It is not voluntaryism. It is coercion. It is violence, pure and simple.

For example, if you want to send your kids to a government school, you are asking to have other people – non-parents – threatened with violence if they don’t pay for what should be your responsibility. When you get a bill in the mail from the State, and you ignore it, chances are, men with guns will be knocking your door. If you try resisting their demands, they can use violent force - even lethal force, if necessary - to ensure your compliance.

And don’t give me this, "I pay taxes too!" crap. All things equal, a parent pays less taxes, while consuming more government services.

Let’s say me, a non-parent, and Sally Singlemom both make $40,000 year in income. When tax time comes around, not only does she get to file in a more favorable status – the "Head of Household" designation grants a larger standard deduction than does "Single" (about 7700 vs. about 5300) – but she also gets an extra exemption for her child (another 3300 per child), plus the child tax credit (up to $1000 per kid). And don’t even get me started on the "Earned Income Tax Credit", which is just a wealth transfer mechanism.

The net result is not only that Sally’s taxable income adjusted downward much more than mine, her tax obligation is credited by virtue of the fact that she has a kid. So she is paying less in taxes, while at the same time demanding more of the system we are both forced to pay into.

That’s a pretty sweet deal...for her.

So, for all you parents out there who send your children to government schools, show some respect for those individuals who are being forced to subsidize your lack of personal responsibility. Don’t try to mask your willingness to steal from others by spouting off pious platitudes and false moral arguments about "the greater good", the importance of education, and "the poor".

It’s theft and you know it.

Just be honest.