2. Defend institutions.
It is institutions that help us to preserve decency. They need our help as well. Do not speak of “our institutions” unless you make them yours by acting on their behalf. Institutions do not protect themselves. They fall one after the other unless each is defended from the beginning. So choose an institution you care about – a court, a newspaper, a law, a labor union – and take its side.
-Timothy Snyder, On Tyranny
The Blessing of Paying Taxes
I am a financial advisor, and in my experience, lots of people feel good about paying taxes to support a society that helped them succeed. Pew[1] has found the same thing — that a majority of Americans think they pay about the right amount of taxes or not enough. And yet, the experience is near universally unpleasant. It doesn’t have to be that way, and we should fix it. But until then, each of us should do what we can to make our experience of paying taxes within the current system an uplifting one.
I have never had a client, friend or colleague who enjoyed the process of paying taxes. We have to watch our mail, email and more to obtain all the documents. The forms are often difficult for non-experts to understand. If we have questions, the hold time to speak with the IRS is typically hours. It’s enormously annoying.
That wasn’t an accident. Many presidents, including Obama and Reagan, wanted the tax system to be less painful. But Grover Norquist didn’t. He is a leading anti-tax activist, a major player in Republican politics. He vehemently resisted any efforts to make paying taxes simpler. In his view, it’s important for taxes to feel frustrating and painful since making them more pleasant would result in less animosity towards taxes and government. He lobbied precisely to make filing taxes irritating.
As Jews, we have a spiritual technology to make mundane things meaningful: berakhot (blessings) and kavanot (intentions).
I suggest that before you file your tax forms, you join me in taking a deep breath and reading the following kavanah.
Tax Intention
Here I sit, ready to pay my taxes and invest in this community’s future. I believe that government can make lives better. We can solve problems together that none of us can solve alone. We need clear water, clean air and healthy communities to thrive. We need schools, hospitals, transit and roads. Social Security allows people to retire with dignity, and a safety net supports us all when we encounter hard times. Through government, we extinguished polio, explored space, connected the country, sequenced the genome, created a national parks system and achieved near-universal literacy. Through programs funded by our tax dollars, we support essential nutrition and food programs for families, world-class science that cures diseases and aid to nations around the world less economically secure than our own. I am grateful for these blessings and proud to participate in making all that possible by contributing part of my earnings to invest in my community. I worked hard for this money, and I know these tax dollars are an essential part of building the country I want to continue to fight to make better.
If you feel annoyed as you prepare your taxes, remember that people like Grover Norquist and TurboTax lobbyists want you to feel that way. To the extent you can, direct your negative feelings towards them and not towards the possibility of a better world through collective action.
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[1]https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/04/07/top-tax-frustrations-for-americans-the-feeling-that-some-corporations-wealthy-people-dont-pay-fair-share/
