When Paying Taxes Became Un-American

In a functioning democracy, Noam Chomsky claims, people would celebrate on tax day—why then do most Americans view every April 15th as a day of mourning?

Topic: Taxation and democracy  

Noam Chomsky: In a democracy, April 15th, when you pay your taxes, would be a day of celebration.  Here we've gotten together as a community, we've decided on certain policies and now we're moving to implement them by our own participation.  That's not the way it's viewed in the United States.  That's a day of mourning.  There's this alien entity, sort of like a—as if it's from Mars somewhere, which is stealing our hard-earned money from us.  We have to give it up, because we have no choice.

Well, that reflects the undermining of even a conception of democracy.

Recorded on: Aug 18, 2009