War and "Dear Taxpayer"
Peter E. Swords

Every spring, I feel that surge of energy that accompanies the return of daylight. Naturally, when things are thawing, sprouting and ready to grow, we look at where to use this energy, much as farmers prioritize what seeds to plant. What would our world be like if we all came together democratically to set planetary energy priorities?

Yet each spring, income tax forms bring a less hopeful mood to many of us. As I review a year's expenses, I see where my family's energy has gone. Sometimes I used to get a certain satisfaction from tax measures that worked out for my family - child care tax credits, for example, or tuition deductions. But such government support for working people keeps waning. Some would say taxes oppress us twice: first, by taking some of our energy, and second, by using it to control us and oppress others.

I recall the day I realized what proportion of my "federal tax" funded things I don't believe in. The Reagan military buildup was on: nuclear missiles in silos and subs, arms for the Contras, and "Star Wars." About 1/3 of what the Feds took went there. At the same time education, social services and health care were being cut - even the solar energy tax credits which helped us build a greenhouse were being phased out. I got very indignant and started writing letters about misplaced national priorities.

At the same time, local support groups developed, challenging militarism. One, the Military Tax Resistance Support Group, helped people share fears, hopes and strategies for reducing our complicity with the Pentagon.

Iraq/Afghanistan War Costs

Spending for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan has primarily been "outside" the normal budgeting process. Graph: War Resisters League

Redirecting War Taxes
Refusing to pay war taxes, whether a few cents of Federal phone tax or symbolic or substantial amounts of Federal income tax, has raised my consciousness and others.' We learned that the actual amount refused was often less important than the symbolic value of redirecting money from weapons and war to specific projects that feed people, provide other basic needs, or prevent violence. Further, the act of civil disobedience (inherent in tax resistance since Thoreau) makes a persuasive witness, even if the IRS collects the tax with penalties and interest.

At demonstrations at the Federal Building in the '80s, we showed how much bigger the Pentagon budget was than that for human services, and got some media. An editorial in the paper described war tax resisters as "smug" and "self-righteous." Yet, we were replacing the myth of the "welfare queen" with the facts about the Pentagon's share of the tax pie. We even had hopes for a "peace dividend."

But since then, dominated by the military, our government has used our taxes to make the US an unethical outcast in the world. Two years ago I wrote to Congress:

"Our grief is not a cry for war." With that quote from families of 9/11 victims, we opposed the US war in Afghanistan and the recent unilateral assault on Iraq.We wanted the terrorists brought to justice through cooperation and international law, not revenge.

Meanwhile, without real debate, Congress shirked its Constitutional responsibility to declare war, and gave the administration carte blanche to invade.…With the rest of the world, we said no, wait for UN inspections, while our representatives appropriated more funds for war. Is this taxation without representation, or what?

Our leaders are not listening. The country is caught in a vicious cycle of militarism and poverty, with a huge gap between rich and poor. The Feds cut Medicaid beds while adding prison beds. US foreign policy pushes proliferation while threatening global annihilation.

We need to form affinity groups to organize resistance and support alternatives to fascism. Each of us can choose the issues we care about most and the ways we want to raise them. (PNL subscribers, see the "Peace Tax Return" stuffer.) We can share our experiences, pool our energy and make a difference. Questioning the lies, standing for justice, and holding each other in hope, we can build a community that truly says NO to war.

Peter is a local family therapist, social worker and training facilitator. He would like to see an end to poverty, especially for children.