Bearpitters: Your thoughts on this?

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From NHfree.com
Keene, N.H.; June 15 2005

38-year-old Kat Dillon isn't satisfied she's getting her money's worth from government schools. In fact, she says she isn't getting anything from them at all.

"My child is homeschooled," says Dillon. "She's never gone to public school and never will. I don't get any use out of it, so it's wrong for them to make me pay for it."

To drive her point home, Dillon will appear at Keene City Hall on June 30 with a check for only a fraction of what the city says she and her family owe.

"The part that would have gone to public schools...we're keeping it. It's our money."

After handing over her truncated check, Dillon will lead a protest outside city hall urging others to "recalculate" their taxes as well. She says she has no idea whether her act of noncompliance will inspire anyone else to do the same but that her family will "do this alone if necessary."

Dillon is a longtime opponent of tax-funded schooling, which she considers "education prevention." And she's no stranger to protest. On June 11 her husband Russell Kanning made national news when he chose arrest over compliance with TSA regulations at Manchester Airport. And it was Dillon who received the infamous nail buff from "Outlaw Manicurist" Mike Fisher. In May, Fisher gave her an unlicensed manicure in front of the state licensing board and also went to jail for it.

The soft-spoken computer programmer says she recognizes her act of civil disobedience will probably trigger retaliation, possibly even the loss of her home. "But," she says, "it's the right thing to do."

Summary:

What: Civil disobedience against school property tax
How: By handing over a check that does not include the "school portion" of the tax, then leading a protest.
Why: "It's my money!"
Where: Keene City Hall: 3 Washington St. (at the traffic circle), Keene, NH.
When: 10:00 A.M. Thursday, June 30, 2005.
Who: Kat Dillon, supporters from NHfree.com, whoever wants to join us.

For more information on the libertarian experiment in New Hampshire, and information on immigrating here for more freedom, visit www.FreeStateProject.org

There certainly is no Scriptural reason to fund a pagan based government . . .



other verses from Romans 13 debunked below:

Shagmar, good points - I won't disagree for now. If the government demands that a Christian clearly violate the commands of Jesus, the Christian is duty-bound to protest, even if it means he goes to his death WITHOUT USING VIOLENCE HIMSELF. After all, the governments of Jesus' day killed him because he was a threat to the governing authorities, and that's what Jesus meant by "Take up your cross [of execution by the govt.] and follow me."

But in this case of protesting school taxation, are they doing it for their religion? Do they just not believe in modern public education?

In Concord, Massachussetts, during the Mexican-American war, Henry D. Thoreau was put in jail for refusing to pay his taxes, because he believed his taxes went to kill innocent Mexicans.

I doubt they are doing it for religious beliefs or else they would refuse to fund abortion . . . .



Yet, people have no problem helping to fund the butcher of 43 million babies . . . .

The department of education ought to be abolished, and the money put into universal tax voucers for private education.

Okay, let's abolish the federal dept. of education, for whatever good that does. Leave education to the 50 states and to thousands of school districts. What problems inherent in the culture itself would that solve? To what extent are local school administrators enslaved to the federal govt.'s mandates? Don't most school districts get almost all their money from state and local taxes?

Vouchers. What are you proposing, Ben? I'm not disagreeing, because I don't know what you mean. Would you take all the state and local money and just give vouchers to families? What's to keep the rich families from adding their own funds and sending their kids to most excellent schools, leaving the working poor and the non-working poor to their inferior schools?

Then again, money doesn't guarantee good education. I don't know what the answer is. However, I think the economic success of the USA over the last 140 years is due to several factors, one of them being free and mandatory publicly-funded education. The system is now broken, but so is the culture. I doubt that the school system is to blame for all its own problems, let alone for the larger problems of the society at alrge.

The Department of Education is a failed system. Failed public programs should not be kept open.

I am going to provide the dictionary definition of Voucher. Not because I am trying to be a jerk, but because I am not sure how best to articulate what a Voucher is.

vouch·er Audio pronunciation of "Voucher" ( P ) Pronunciation Key (vouchr)
n.

1. A piece of substantiating evidence; a proof.
2. A written record of expenditure, disbursement, or completed transaction.
3. A written authorization or certificate, especially one exchangeable for cash or representing a credit against future expenditures.


So basically it is a government issued proof, paid for by taxes, which one would use in order to pay for Private Education. Tax vouchers of this kind would ensure universal education, while at the same time assuring the kind of private sector competition that would keep American education at high standards.

I also advocate the voucher system for American Healthcare. Tax Vouchers covering doctor visits, catastrophic care, pharmaceuticals, and hospitilization would make healthcare universal, while at the same time keeping all the benefits of private sector competition.

Those ideas sound good in theory. Not sure about how well they'd work out in practice. I also doubt whether it would be enacted. Teachers' unions are very strong, and they're everywhere. Being educated, teachers know how to apply pressure.

I very much doubt it would ever be enacted, though I am sure it would be a better option.

Well "Comrade" another plan to redistribute the wealth.

You would oppose the idea of all Americans having the right to a high school education?

Do you realize how radically adversely the politcies you dictate would effect the United States?

You mean so they wouldn't get a communist or atheist based education . . .?

Well actually if they were using tax vouchers to buy a private education they could purchase any education they wanted to. Most private schools today are Christian in nature.

Render to Caesar, that which is Caesar's. MARK

Oh the parable of tribute to Caesar . . . . yeah tribute to God for the worshipers of God. . .

The coin, like our coins and currencies, contains the image of our national leadership (president, king, etc.). The two times that Jesus was confronted with the tax-paying issue, he said to pay the tax, or he saw to it that the tax was paid. Paul commanded in Romans 13, "Pay tribute to whom tribute is due, custom to whom custom." Meaning, phronos and telios (transliterated from koine Greek) - property taxes and personal taxes (close enough).

Now, what if there were a tax to raise money to rape your mother? Don't pay it, but be willing to be crucified by The Chiefs of Staff on the gate of the White House.

Half of American income taxes pay for the wars of past, present and future wars. I'd like to withhold my half, but I don't see Jesus or Paul giving me permission. Rather I read their commands to pay it. I don't like that, but where does obedience leave off? Obedience to Jesus, but he's saying to pay the tax.......hmmmm. there's bound to be a loophole somewhere here....

You are really funny . . . . you forgot to bring the verses to "backup" your claims. . . . oops Jesus was speaking in parables to the Pharisees about tribute . . . .

Matt 22:1 And Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables, and said, 2 The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king, who made a marriage for his son, 3 And sent his servants to call them that were invited to the wedding: and they would not come. 4 Again, he sent other servants, saying, Tell them who are invited, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready: come to the marriage. 5 But they made light of it , and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise: 6 And the remnant took his servants, and treated them spitefully, and slew them . 7 But when the king heard of it , he was angry: and he sent his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. 8 Then he saith to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they who were invited were not worthy. 9 Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, invite to the marriage. 10 So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests. 11 And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man who had not a wedding garment: 12 And he saith to him, Friend, how camest thou in here not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless. 13 Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 14 For many are called, but few are chosen.
15 Then went the Pharisees, and took counsel how they might entangle him in his talk. 16 And they sent out to him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, Master, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth, neither carest thou for any man : for thou regardest not the person of men. 17 Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar, or not? 18 But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites? 19 Show me the tribute money. And they brought to him a penny. {penny: in value seven pence halfpenny} 20 And he saith to them, Whose is this image and superscription? {superscription: or, inscription} 21 They say to him, Caesar's. Then saith he to them, Render therefore to Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and to God the things that are God's. 22 When they had heard these words , they marvelled, and left him, and departed.

Oh and Romans 13 is only talking about righteous governments . . . . here is the proof for each verse . . .

<<Do you realize how radically adversely the politcies you dictate would effect the United States?>>

Do you realize how radically adversely the government schools have affected the United States?

Have you ever seen a 6th grade primer from the pre-gov-school 19th century and tried to do the math and spelling it requires?

Not only has government schooling hurt society, I suspect it has dragged down private schooling and home schooling.

I think public schools are a joke. Kids don't learn to read and add, but they are indoctrinated with the idea that the government saved us from every disaster we ever faced. It leaves out the fact that the government helped cause most of them.

Best example:
In our schools, FDR and the New Deal are said to have been responsible for our recovery after the depression. In fact, the near opposite is true. FDR, Hoover (?) and the Fed Reserve killed our economy when they stepped in to stop a recession. They caused the depression.

Ben-T:
Do tax vouchers redistribute wealth? Or do they simply give back an equal % of what people paid in taxes. The former I wouldn't support, the latter I would. However, I would rather have them simply lower the taxes accordingly.

I think our privately run universities are the best example of what private education can be.

I agree. That is why I support abolishing the department of education.

And no Dixon, I would never support anything that involves the redistribution of wealth. However the Tax Voucher concept ensures liberals would whine and moan less.

Although it got a little buried by the Souter uproar (Free Staters trying to force Judge Souter off his property), this protest did happen as planned. However it got little news coverage, just a photographer from the Sentinel and coverage on the local radio station WKBK, also some mentions on WGIR in Manchester/Seacost. On the other hand, it turned downtown Keene into an almost constant barrage of honks as people spotted the Gadsden flags and Ax the Tax signs. Probably 2K people saw the protest, which was just 10 of us total but more than Keene is used to! One lady threw a folder at us as she was driving by, inside was a note saying God bless you and leaving her email addie.

And NH Senate boss Tom Eaton was there for about 15 minutes but probably not because of the protest. Couple of us got a chance to talk to him and thank him for the opposition to cig tax and something else he was helpful on, I forget what it was...

I got three new contacts out of the event and will try and rope em in to the next one as our little asteroid starts to gain enough mass to look more like a planet!

But the criticisms I hear on this board don't go in one ear and out the other. Next time someone has a civil dis idea I'm going to try and ask them to let me bounce it around here and elsewhere first. I do agree that the best acts of defiance are those which resonate with a lot of people.

Of course this will not be the end of Kat's protest, just the beginning of a multi-year process which will either make the force of public school funding visible for what it is...or prove her capable of getting away with such defiance