Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Status:
"It Can't Rain All The Time"
(set 29 days ago)
Location: North Pacific
15,754 posts, read 7,592,007 times
Reputation: 2576
Quote:
Originally Posted by vacoder
Tired of pissing on Catholics and Jews? I mean you have to admit that has been the American way.
There is a historical evolution of people, their churches and their governments and how we came to be here in America in the 1700's - present. If talking about them is pissing on them, then I'm guilty. However, I never said they were right in what they did, or they were wrong in what they did. I only explained it ...
I know why people do what they do today ... as it doesn't take much to figure it out.
There is a historical evolution of people, their churches and their governments and how we came to be here in America in the 1700's - present. If talking about them is pissing on them, then I'm guilty. However, I never said they were right in what they did, or they were wrong in what they did. I only explained it ...
I know why people do what they do today ... as it doesn't take much to figure it out.
Yes and the most polically influential is southern white baptists. And to this day they consider Catholics and Mormons cults.
Not digressing. Merely pointing out the dangers of treating a religion as a non profit. We have seen throughout American history the bias. The best solution is absolute separation of state and church.
Any property other than the actual worship space should be taxed if churches are the direct beneficiaries of public tax money....Schools, rectories, housing, publishing houses, businesses whatever. If they want tax money they must pay taxes. They should realize that the power to tax can be the power to destroy. It would be wiser to avoid taking tax money than to risk the burden and power of taxation.
I say tax churches. Since they essentially make no profit, they will pay very little
I'm all for churches having the ability to pass on voting advise to their congregations and to arrange buses to drive around and take people to the polls to vote.
Let them off their political leash and help them get out the vote!
"The power to tax is the power to destroy." -John Marshall
That is why.
And that's pretty much the point of this whole exercise. One of these "Tax religion!" threads pops up every month or so.
People like to point as examples the televangelists driving BMWs with private jets as good reasons why churches should be taxed, and yeah, they are ugly, but that's not it. Most of the churches in this nation barely cobble together enough money to pay the utilities and upkeep on their property. To tax them, specifically, to make them pay property tax on their buildings, literally means to close them down. That's the real driver behind this idea, to close the churches down. You're not going to get property tax money from the churches because they don't have the money to pay those kind of taxes. What the "tax the churches!" warriors really mean is "get rid of the churches and let's get some business on that property who can pay."
Unfortunately, they don't get that these little, living-on-a-shoestring churches are the places where the recovery programs can meet, and where the people who provide the local assistance to the poor form the community that does those things.
Now, maybe that's the way it will be, and if it is, so be it. People do get attached to their church "homes", but if greed prevails and the public wants the buildings to be privately owned and converted to tax ratable usage, the churches will survive, because the church is the people, not the building. It just may force a change in the way the churches continue to do what they do and where they do it.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
