Continuing from last issue on services, I wanted to expand on the
subject. In this case, I want to present my case on why services should
not be taxed. Let us begin.
Don't Tax it: First and foremost, services can be
either free, pay as you go or subscription based. So money can change
hands. However, unlike with goods (like cars, toys, tools etc.) nothing
physical is exchanged. There is no exchange of property. In other
words, teachers providing an education to students as a service would not be
taxed. Same goes for intellectual property, such as online news, blogs
and such. These are all services where no physical property is exchanged,
but is either someone's labor, which can count as a form of free expression, or
information which is someone's freedom of speech. So should a web
designer be taxed because they were paid to design a web site despite it being
a form of free expression and speech? (It counts because the website provides
information and the design of the site itself can be considered art).
Should an online magazine be taxed for charging a nominal fee to access
their content which is their freedom of speech and even part of their freedom
of the press? No property in the form of an item is returned from the
money given, just intangibles like labor and information. So why are such
things taxed when they clearly blur the lines between the meaning of exchange
of property?
Conclusion: As long as nothing physical is
returned in exchange for the money like a computer, or a toy, then it is
probably a service. When we provide our labor to a business we work at,
we are also providing a service. Can you imagine the sheer level of
economic progress we can achieve by eliminating taxes on services all around?
People would be able to keep so much more of their income and have more
options with respect to jobs in service based industries like computer
programming and artists. Health Care would be almost entirely untaxed, which
means cheaper medicine. Services that are internet based would be the top
commodities with respect to global trade and business due to the freedom to be
sold to the entire world. Internet based services provide information,
which is the freedoms of expression and may also, depending on the content, be
considered a part of the press. These online services even allow people
to peaceably assemble via online chat rooms and even aid in freedom of
religion. Basically the internet based ones alone have at least one out
of four of the freedoms guaranteed by the first amendment to the United States
Constitution (those freedoms being freedom of speech, worship, press, peaceful
assembly and to petition the government). That’s one freedom and
potentially including the other three save government petitioning. Labor
based services also qualify as a form of speech for people choose where they
work, how they work and can move (if they have the money) to find work (the
ability to move and choose your occupation is free speech). That work may
be providing the news (freedom of the press) or involve a religious based
industry or charity (freedom of religion). Services based on labor can be
community organizing which aids in freedom of religion, counts as peaceable
assembly and can even be a form of petitioning the government. Do you get
it know a little? By taxing these services, the government is not only
diminishing our income for selling intangible materials, they are actually
taxing our freedoms! So let's stop the madness, and not tax services
anymore.
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