What Happens Next: A Gallimaufry

melancholic romantic comic cynic. bi & genderqueer. fantasy writer. sysrae on ao3.

It suddenly occurs to me

that all those politicians and rich people currently whining about how they shouldn’t have to pay taxes to contribute to the running of their country are like entitled teenagers whining about how they shouldn’t have to do chores to contribute to the running of their household. Before you leave home, you reap the benefits of living under your parents’ roof: they feed you, clothe you, hopefully protect and care for you, and in return for all that effort - which, naturally, many teens take for granted as their rightful due - it’s not unreasonable for them to ask that you take out the garbage, obey their rules, clean the dishes, keep the house clean and do such chores as are within your capabilities, like mowing the lawn or doing the grocery shopping. That’s just fair, and while some teens might rant and rave about how being asked to clean their room is literally the worst thing that has ever happened in the history of ever, we all know this isn’t true. 

When rich people whine about how they shouldn’t have to contribute, it’s pretty much the same thing. The country is the parent, providing them with roads, schools, law enforcement, hospitals, media, public transport, power supply systems, government and everything else that constitutes the running of the state - and in return, it’s not unreasonable for the country to ask that the people who live there contribute to the system by helping to keep it functional, viz: by paying their fucking taxes. The thing is, though, that many rich people are confused about how this metaphor works: because of how much money they have, they end up thinking that they personally, and not the country as aggregate, are the parents in the equation; that they’re the ones in charge, and ought to have contributions owed to them. When in fact, they’re more rightly equivalent to teenagers who’ve reaped the greatest benefits of their parents’ support, and who subsequently have the greatest ability - to say nothing of the greatest obligation - to give their parents a hand, especially if their siblings are reasonably unable to do so, or to do so in the same way, or to the same extent.

Any teenager who argues that they shouldn’t have to contribute to the upkeep of any part of the household that they don’t personally use or whose use they don’t endorse will soon find their bid for autonomy curtailed by the simple interconnectedness of everything in the house. They might not be able to drive and have no interest in learning to do so, but they still reap the benefits of being driven places, and of the fact that it’s easier for their parents to shop and run errands with a car than not. They might not personally use the laundry, but that doesn’t mean their clothes don’t get washed when their parents’ do, or that they don’t make use of the same water supply. They might not cook or shop, but that doesn’t mean they don’t eat the food in the fridge or enjoy the dinners made for them. They might not like the furniture in the lounge room, but that doesn’t mean they won’t use it to watch TV.

Similarly, rich people who argue that their tax dollars shouldn’t go towards the support of services that they don’t personally use are oblivious to the interconnectedness of human living. They might have private health insurance, but that doesn’t mean they won’t benefit from living in a society where those with less money have access to affordable or free care, making them physically and mentally healthier, better able to work, at a much lower risk of incurring medical debt, and better able to manage and care for their families. They might not use public transport, but that doesn’t mean they don’t benefit from the government upkeep of roads and services, or from living in a society where those who can’t afford a car have greater access to jobs that are further afield. They might not send their children to public schools, but that doesn’t mean they don’t benefit from living in an educated society rather than an uneducated one - or that they won’t reap the negative consequences should this state of affairs be reversed. 

What I’m getting at is this: arguing that your taxes should be minimal despite your wealth and that they should only go to support services that you personally use is like an entitled teenager refusing to do the laundry because they don’t want to even though they have the time and anyway, most of it isn’t theirs. It’s selfish, childish and petty, and all it proves is that your sense of entitlement outweighs your awareness of your responsibilities. It doesn’t matter how much of the garbage in the kitchen bin is yours: you contributed to filling it, and if you fail to take out the rubbish despite it being your chore, then the kitchen will stink, vermin will come, the house will get filthy, and everyone - including you - will have to deal with the consequences. And when that moment comes, it doesn’t matter that only the chocolate wrapper, the milk carton and the pizza box were really, properly yours - because so is the crippling neglect that let the rats get in.

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  15. pilferingapples reblogged this from fozmeadows and added:
    This is the best extended metaphor I have seen in a long long time.
  16. kogiopsis reblogged this from fozmeadows and added:
    PERFECT COMPARISON IS PERFECT. Foz has basically explained all of my thoughts on taxes and then some. (Bolded my...
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