\-\-\-\--Original Message\-\-\-\--

From: Richard Bachert
\[[[mailto:richard.bachert@comcast.net]{.underline}](mailto:richard.bachert@comcast.net)\]

Sent: Wednesday, March 09, 2005 4:50 PM

To: comments

Cc: gloria@fairtax.org

Subject: PUBLIC COMMENT:HISTORICAL CASE FOR THE NATIONAL RETAIL SALES
TAX

(FAIRTAX)

Please find attached 5 double-spaced, 12 point type font pages per
specs. Thanks. Dick Bachert

HISTORICAL CASE FOR THE NATIONAL RETAIL SALES TAX (FAIRTAX)

All the battles we face to restore the US Constitution are not matters
of data and economic minutiae. The struggle is about that most precious
of commodities, that ultimate intangible --- **FREEDOM**!

Harvard philosopher George Santayana observed that "Those who fail to
understand history are condemned to repeat it." It is also true that a
page of history is worth volumes of experience. Does history offer some
answers?

It does!

Since my task is to attempt to persuade you to support the replacement
of the present income tax with the FairTax, here's what some of our
Founders and forefathers had to say on the subject of taxation:

"Indirect taxes prescribe their own limit, which cannot be exceeded
without defeating the end proposed ‑‑ that is, an extension of the
revenue\...If duties are too high, they lessen the consumption; the
collection is eluded; and the product to the treasury is not so great as
when they are confined within proper and moderate bounds. This forms a
complete barrier against any material oppression of the citizens by
taxes of this class, and is itself a natural limitation of the power of
imposing them."

That was Alexander Hamilton, writing in "The Federalist Papers". Mr.
Hamilton went on in Federalist No. 21 to describe a government whose
ordinary expenses would be borne by imposts, duties and excises. Please
note that all these taxes are INDIRECT TAXES (taxes on THINGS or
ACTIVITIES)!

Since excise taxes were originally placed on items of luxury or those
which were then considered "sinful", it was thought the people could
easily survive and prosper without these items and the government would
be maintained at its intended small size.

And this from another radical of the time:

"\...it is the pleasure and pride of every American to ask 'What farmer,
what mechanic, what laborer ever sees a tax‑gatherer of the United
States?'" Thomas Jefferson, 1805.

Further, James Madison, author of the Constitution, in discussing
America\'s original tax reform package is quoted as saying: \"\...a
national revenue must be obtained; but the system must be such a one,
that, while it secures the object of revenue it shall not be oppressive
to our constituents.\" If these wise men had their way (and for 126
years, they did!), the IRS would be the ERS, the EXTERNAL Revenue
Service!

And, who said this?

"The tariff is the cheaper system, because the duties, being collected
in large parcels at a few commercial points, will require comparatively
few officers in their collection; while by the direct (income) tax
system, the land must be literally covered with assessors and
collectors, going forth like swarms of Egyptian locusts, devouring every
blade of grass and other green things."

That was president-to-be Abraham Lincoln in an 1843 discussion of the
proper and -- unique thought this -- CONSTITUTIONAL method of taxation.
Some 20 years later he abandoned his earlier position and supported a
"temporary" income tax to fund the Union side of the War Between the
States. While some of the politicians of the time wanted to retain it
after the war (some things **never** change), the tax was eventually
killed through the efforts of America's small business people.

And there's more:

"It (the 16^th^ Amendment allowing an unapportioned tax on 'incomes')
means that the state must give up a legitimate and long established
source of revenue and yield it to the Federal government.

"It (the 16^th^ Amendment) means that the state actually invited the
Federal government to invade its territory, to oust its jurisdiction and
to establish Federal dominion within the innermost citadel of reserved
rights of the Commonwealth.

"This amendment will do what even the 14^th^ and 15^th^ Amendments did
not do---it will extend the Federal power so as to reach the citizens in
the ordinary business of life. A hand from Washington will be stretched
out and placed upon every man's business; the eye of a Federal inspector
will be in every man's counting house.

"The law will of necessity have inquisitorial features, it will provide
penalties. It will create a complicated machinery.

"Under it, businessmen will be hauled into courts distant from their
homes.

"Heavy fines, imposed by distant and unfamiliar tribunals, will
constantly menace the taxpayer.

"An army of Federal inspectors, spies and detectives will descend upon
the state. They will compel men of business to show their books and
disclose the secrets of their affairs. They will dictate forms of
bookkeeping. They will require statements and affidavits. On the one
hand the inspector can blackmail the taxpayer and on the other, he can
profit by selling his secret to his competitor.

"When the Federal government gets a strangle‑hold on the individual
businessman, state lines will exist nowhere but on the maps. Its agents
will everywhere supervise the commercial life of the states\...I am not
willing by any voluntary act to give up revenue which the State of
Virginia herself needs, nor to surrender that measure of state's rights
which was, and the construction of the Federal courts have permitted to
remain." Richard E. Byrd, Speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates on
March 3, 1910.

Virginia DID NOT **r**atify the 16^th^ Amendment!

Except for that "temporary" income tax in the 1860s, during America's
first 126 years, proportionally, years of unparalleled growth and
prosperity, we funded the necessary, proper and Constitutional
operations of the national government with apportioned, INDIRECT taxes.

Besides the incredible and dangerous erosion of freedom attending it,
what are the other downsides of the current income tax and how would the
FairTax solve them?

\*NO MORE PRESUMPTION OF GUILT IN THOSE IRS CONFRONTATIONS;

\*NO MORE WASTED 10.2 BILLION COMPLIANCE RELATED MAN HOURS;

\*NO MORE WASTED APPROX. \$ SIX HUNDRED BILLION COMPLIANCE RELATED
COSTS;

\*NO MORE \$200 BILLION++ ANNUAL UNDERGROUND ECONOMY. THE COCAINE
DEALER, AND OTHERS WHO NOW LARGELY ESCAPE THE CURRENT TAX SYSTEM WILL
PAY TAXES EACH AND EVERY TIME THEY TAKE THEIR LARGELY CASH REVENUES DOWN
TO BUY THAT NEW ROLEX, ROLLS OR YACHT.

\* US EXPORTS WOULD BECOME MORE COMPETITIVE IN FOREIGN MARKETS.

We must not miss this possibly once‑in‑a‑lifetime chance to rid
ourselves of one of the most wasteful, inefficient and freedom
threatening tax systems in the world.

Imagine what those resources could do for the U.S. economy if they were
turned loose for real, productive activities?

The hidden nature of the income tax makes it one of the most REGRESSIVE
tax systems known to man. The poor pay these corporate taxes and
compliance costs (which businesses must pass on in the prices of their
goods and services) estimated to be 20% to 25% of the price of that
first loaf of bread, jug of milk or can of baby formula! That 20% to 25%
or so is literally embedded in the prices for our goods, whether
Americans or foreigners pay them. (And as correctly pointed out by Sam
Gibbons, only PEOPLE pay taxes so forget those envy inspired proposals
to tax businesses.)

And those of you worried that the FairTax would hurt the poor (and your
writer is one of you!), a simple system of **[universal]{.underline}**
rebates would prevent that harm.

But, as I pointed out at the top of these remarks, the REAL cost of our
90 year long nightmare with the income tax and the IRS is in that most
perishable and fragile commodity --- FREEDOM!

If you think it's long past time to end our 80 year long nightmare with
what author/historian/former tax attorney Charles Adams correctly calls
"\...one of the most viciously enforced systems of taxation in the
history of mankind", seize this opportunity to REPLACE the income tax
with the FairTax.

I will thank you, my children will thank you, my grandchildren will
thank you and THEIR grandchildren will thank you.

Dick Bachert

4053 Glen Meadow Dr,/Norcross, GA 30092

\-\-\-\--Original Message\-\-\-\--

From: Richard Bachert
\[[[mailto:richard.bachert@comcast.net]{.underline}](mailto:richard.bachert@comcast.net)\]

Sent: Wednesday, March 09, 2005 5:31 PM

To: comments

Subject: Comments

Resubmission of previous with cover page.

Response to request for comments by the Federal Tax Reform Panel on Feb.
16, 2005

Richard A. Bachert

# 4053 Glen Meadow Drive

Norcross, Georgia 30092

March 9, 2005

Individual Submission to Federal Tax Reform Panel

HISTORICAL CASE FOR THE NATIONAL RETAIL SALES TAX (FAIRTAX)

All the battles we face to restore the US Constitution are not matters
of data and economic minutiae. The struggle is about that most precious
of commodities, that ultimate intangible --- **FREEDOM**!

Harvard philosopher George Santayana observed that "Those who fail to
understand history are condemned to repeat it." It is also true that a
page of history is worth volumes of experience. Does history offer some
answers?

It does!

Since my task is to attempt to persuade you to support the replacement
of the present income tax with the FairTax, here's what some of our
Founders and forefathers had to say on the subject of taxation:

"Indirect taxes prescribe their own limit, which cannot be exceeded
without defeating the end proposed ‑‑ that is, an extension of the
revenue\...If duties are too high, they lessen the consumption; the
collection is eluded; and the product to the treasury is not so great as
when they are confined within proper and moderate bounds. This forms a
complete barrier against any material oppression of the citizens by
taxes of this class, and is itself a natural limitation of the power of
imposing them."

That was Alexander Hamilton, writing in "The Federalist Papers". Mr.
Hamilton went on in Federalist No. 21 to describe a government whose
ordinary expenses would be borne by imposts, duties and excises. Please
note that all these taxes are INDIRECT TAXES (taxes on THINGS or
ACTIVITIES)!

Since excise taxes were originally placed on items of luxury or those
which were then considered "sinful", it was thought the people could
easily survive and prosper without these items and the government would
be maintained at its intended small size.

And this from another radical of the time:

"\...it is the pleasure and pride of every American to ask 'What farmer,
what mechanic, what laborer ever sees a tax‑gatherer of the United
States?'" Thomas Jefferson, 1805.

Further, James Madison, author of the Constitution, in discussing
America\'s original tax reform package is quoted as saying: \"\...a
national revenue must be obtained; but the system must be such a one,
that, while it secures the object of revenue it shall not be oppressive
to our constituents.\" If these wise men had their way (and for 126
years, they did!), the IRS would be the ERS, the EXTERNAL Revenue
Service!

And, who said this?

"The tariff is the cheaper system, because the duties, being collected
in large parcels at a few commercial points, will require comparatively
few officers in their collection; while by the direct (income) tax
system, the land must be literally covered with assessors and
collectors, going forth like swarms of Egyptian locusts, devouring every
blade of grass and other green things."

That was president-to-be Abraham Lincoln in an 1843 discussion of the
proper and -- unique thought this -- CONSTITUTIONAL method of taxation.
Some 20 years later he abandoned his earlier position and supported a
"temporary" income tax to fund the Union side of the War Between the
States. While some of the politicians of the time wanted to retain it
after the war (some things **never** change), the tax was eventually
killed through the efforts of America's small business people.

And there's more:

"It (the 16^th^ Amendment allowing an unapportioned tax on 'incomes')
means that the state must give up a legitimate and long established
source of revenue and yield it to the Federal government.

"It (the 16^th^ Amendment) means that the state actually invited the
Federal government to invade its territory, to oust its jurisdiction and
to establish Federal dominion within the innermost citadel of reserved
rights of the Commonwealth.

"This amendment will do what even the 14^th^ and 15^th^ Amendments did
not do---it will extend the Federal power so as to reach the citizens in
the ordinary business of life. A hand from Washington will be stretched
out and placed upon every man's business; the eye of a Federal inspector
will be in every man's counting house.

"The law will of necessity have inquisitorial features, it will provide
penalties. It will create a complicated machinery.

"Under it, businessmen will be hauled into courts distant from their
homes.

"Heavy fines, imposed by distant and unfamiliar tribunals, will
constantly menace the taxpayer.

"An army of Federal inspectors, spies and detectives will descend upon
the state. They will compel men of business to show their books and
disclose the secrets of their affairs. They will dictate forms of
bookkeeping. They will require statements and affidavits. On the one
hand the inspector can blackmail the taxpayer and on the other, he can
profit by selling his secret to his competitor.

"When the Federal government gets a strangle‑hold on the individual
businessman, state lines will exist nowhere but on the maps. Its agents
will everywhere supervise the commercial life of the states\...I am not
willing by any voluntary act to give up revenue which the State of
Virginia herself needs, nor to surrender that measure of state's rights
which was, and the construction of the Federal courts have permitted to
remain." Richard E. Byrd, Speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates on
March 3, 1910.

Virginia DID NOT **r**atify the 16^th^ Amendment!

Except for that "temporary" income tax in the 1860s, during America's
first 126 years, proportionally, years of unparalleled growth and
prosperity, we funded the necessary, proper and Constitutional
operations of the national government with apportioned, INDIRECT taxes.

Besides the incredible and dangerous erosion of freedom attending it,
what are the other downsides of the current income tax and how would the
FairTax solve them?

\*NO MORE PRESUMPTION OF GUILT IN THOSE IRS CONFRONTATIONS;

\*NO MORE WASTED 10.2 BILLION COMPLIANCE RELATED MAN HOURS;

\*NO MORE WASTED APPROX. \$ SIX HUNDRED BILLION COMPLIANCE RELATED
COSTS;

\*NO MORE \$200 BILLION++ ANNUAL UNDERGROUND ECONOMY. THE COCAINE
DEALER, AND OTHERS WHO NOW LARGELY ESCAPE THE CURRENT TAX SYSTEM WILL
PAY TAXES EACH AND EVERY TIME THEY TAKE THEIR LARGELY CASH REVENUES DOWN
TO BUY THAT NEW ROLEX, ROLLS OR YACHT.

\* US EXPORTS WOULD BECOME MORE COMPETITIVE IN FOREIGN MARKETS.

We must not miss this possibly once‑in‑a‑lifetime chance to rid
ourselves of one of the most wasteful, inefficient and freedom
threatening tax systems in the world.

Imagine what those resources could do for the U.S. economy if they were
turned loose for real, productive activities?

The hidden nature of the income tax makes it one of the most REGRESSIVE
tax systems known to man. The poor pay these corporate taxes and
compliance costs (which businesses must pass on in the prices of their
goods and services) estimated to be 20% to 25% of the price of that
first loaf of bread, jug of milk or can of baby formula! That 20% to 25%
or so is literally embedded in the prices for our goods, whether
Americans or foreigners pay them. (And as correctly pointed out by Sam
Gibbons, only PEOPLE pay taxes so forget those envy inspired proposals
to tax businesses.)

And those of you worried that the FairTax would hurt the poor (and your
writer is one of you!), a simple system of **[universal]{.underline}**
rebates would prevent that harm.

But, as I pointed out at the top of these remarks, the REAL cost of our
90 year long nightmare with the income tax and the IRS is in that most
perishable and fragile commodity --- FREEDOM!

If you think it's long past time to end our 80 year long nightmare with
what author/historian/former tax attorney Charles Adams correctly calls
"\...one of the most viciously enforced systems of taxation in the
history of mankind", seize this opportunity to REPLACE the income tax
with the FairTax.

I will thank you, my children will thank you, my grandchildren will
thank you and THEIR grandchildren will thank you.

Dick Bachert

4053 Glen Meadow Dr,/Norcross, GA 30092