I am a “small government” kind of person, and I am tired of being taxed to death. Taxation is basically theft from the citizens.
Use this as a comparison:
Imagine that I have founded a charity organization that helps the poor. But not enough people are voluntarily contributing to my charity, so many of the poor remain hungry. I decide to solve the problem by approaching well‐off people on the street, pointing a gun at them, and demanding their money. I funnel the money into my charity, and the poor are fed and clothed at last.
In this scenario, I would be called a thief. Why? The answer is clear: because I am taking other people’s property without their consent. “Taking without consent” includes taking by means of a threat of force issued against other people. This fact is not altered by what I do with the money after taking it. You wouldn’t say, “Oh, you gave the money to the poor? In that case, taking people’s property without consent wasn’t theft after all.” It does not matter if it was a socially beneficial theft, it was still a theft.
Now compare the case of taxation. When the government “taxes” citizens - the government demands money from each citizen, under a threat of force. If you do not pay, armed agents hired by the government will take you away and lock you in a cage and take all your property.
This is clearly a case as any of taking people’s property without consent. So, the government is a thief. This conclusion is not changed by the fact that the government uses the money for a good cause (if it does so). That might make taxation a socially beneficial kind of theft, but it is still theft.
While most people are reluctant to call taxation theft for several reasons, one of which is “Taxation is not theft, because citizens have agreed to pay taxes. This is part of the “social contract,” which is a kind of agreement between citizens and the government, whereby the citizens agree to pay taxes and obey the laws, in return for the government’s protection. By using government services (such as roads, schools, and police), and remaining present in the government’s territory, you indicate that you accept the social contract.
When the government demands that we either pay it money or vacate our own land, the government acts as a thief. There simply IS NOT any such contract. The government has never actually written up and offered such a contract, nor has anyone signed it. Are YOU going to sign a contract that allows the government to take everything from you?
Some say the use of government services might imply agreement to pay for those services, BUT there are people who do not use the services who are required to pay. The government forces citizens to pay taxes regardless of whether they use government services or not. Therefore, the fact that you use government services does not indicate anything about whether you agree to pay taxes.
Just an example: Are your kids grown and away from home? No kids in schools? Then why do you have to pay property taxes to school districts? You are NOT using those services.
You bought your house and paid for it – but if you don’t pay the government, they will extort it right out from under you. What is right about this?
Taxes are government theft through extortion.