The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1932-03-25
One Way Out


There is one quick, easy and obvious way to bal
ance the federal budget That is to egalize and tax
beer.
1t is not question of making a dry country wet.
The beer already is being made sold and consumed.
All the millions of dollars which the government has
taken from pressed taxpayers and thrown away
upon enforcement of unenforceable law have not
stopped the beer traffic. 1t has bred racketeerng and
corrupted the nation.
And it has robbed the government of revenue
There was day. not 50 long ago, when Americans
were not concerned with government finances. Times
were good, money was easy.
But today every taxpayer and every official is wor-
ried about the federal deficit. They are seeking a
Of federal which will do the least
damage to the consumer and to business revival
The proposed beer tax meets that dire need. It
will help the government and the taxpayer out of a
hole 1t will hurt but the bootegger and the
racketeer.
The beer tax amendment to the revenue bill should
be put to a vote. Every congressman and senator
should be put on record.
There are those who say that such a vote would
be only gesture, that the measure could not carry
We are not so sure.
Two weeks ago those same party leaders told us
that the sales tax could not be defeated The house.
by overwhelming vote, Thursday, disproved the
prophecy. Perhaps the house. if given fair chance
may do the impossible" again by passing beer tax
In any event, the issue is clean cut If the drys in
sist making the government increase the deficit by
throwing away more millions on so-caled enforce
ment while depriving the government of its rightfu
tax revenues from beer now being made then the
drys must take responsibility for imposition of other
taxes
We dc not believe that other taxes can be levied
which not harmful to business in this crisis
Now that the house properly has raised the income
and estate taxes it may turn back to get the
ing revenue from the Hoover Mellon excise tax plan
on luxures and semi-luxlres.
If congress refuses to tax beer such a luxury tax
may be the only Immediately effective alternative.
But if automobiles and radios, and the like are taxed
then the manufacturer and the merchant and the
consumer will he squeezed to pay the money which
the government refuses to collect from the booegger
All the shrn propaganda about the house wreck
ing the nation by defeating the sales tax is absurd
The Scrpps- Howard newspapers and other organiza-
tions opposing the sales tax were defending vital
American tradition
Defeat of the sales tax merely confirms and re-
asserts fundamental American principle of taxation
old the republic. The vote increasing income
and estate taxes merely repeats the action taken
during the last national crisis.
This victory for sense having been won,
congress now is back where it started when mis-
guided combine of Democratic and Republican bosses
tried to rush Il up a dangerous alley.
Having taken the normal American course of
avoiding general sales tax and utilizing the income
and inheritance tax to the full, get down
to the business of balancing the rest of the budget
After unnecessary military and other federal ex
pendtures have been cut and after necessary pro-
vision has been made for unemployment relief which
no longer be met by local agencies alone, the
government will have to raise additional funds by
tax on beer tax such articles automobiles
We believe the American people have a choice.
Unless all signs fall more than two-thirds of the
voters favor a beer tax.
If the taxpayers speak as loudly in this beer tax
fight as they did in the sales tax battle, perhaps
congress again will register the representative will
of the voters.