Evidently, it seems that the motivation behind Derrick Bird’s murderous afternoon was that the tax man was pursuing him over £60,000 that he had failed to declare.

In the spirit of the Daily Mail calling for “something to be done”, can I suggest that we ban taxation?

1
Ed P June 4, 2010 at 12:45

If there is any ammunition left, perhaps it could be delivered to the tax man (preferably at high velocity)

2
Old Slaughter June 4, 2010 at 12:47

Wonderful TJW

3
KWCook June 4, 2010 at 13:29

Well if MPs can ‘forget’ thy have paid off their mortgages…

4
Sue June 4, 2010 at 13:45

Remember when the expenses debacle first broke the news. There were several MP’s on “suicide watch” then.

60,000 is nothing compared to what some of the “honourable members” diddled the taxpayer out of. It’s always one rule for them, one for us.

People with tax problems should not be imprisoned, they should be given time to pay, unless you take the “Freeman” view of course… then the tax just doesn’t belong to the government in the first place.

5
JuliaM June 4, 2010 at 15:52

” There were several MP’s on “suicide watch” then.”

Even if that were true and not a total bid for a sympathetic media, I bet they weren’t watching them too conscientiously!

6
rayboy June 4, 2010 at 14:39

Succintly put!
I must be a Freeman then for I think that Government is the problem and that they have no right to tax us. In fact I see taxation as theft and we stand by and let them away with it. More fool us.

7
A Brave New World June 4, 2010 at 15:54

I seem to remember another case not so long ago where a man killed his wife and daughter, slaughtered the horses and dogs, and then burned down his house before taking his own life. I think that his actions were also attributed to pressure from HMR&C. They seem to have this effect on people.

I wonder how many more such cases never make the news?

8
Spiral Architect June 5, 2010 at 03:55

This one certainly made the news.

The fellow had completely over-reached himself through bad decision-making

What a twat to take his family with him.

9
Jonathan June 4, 2010 at 17:10

A friend of my Father was taken to court for non payment by the Inland Revenue in the 1950’s. He won, but they hounded him from then on, even watching his house. The pressure got to him in the end and he hanged himself.

10
Pericles June 4, 2010 at 20:58

No matter what the rate of taxation, there would always be a few unwilling to accept the concept.

Even I — a devout anarchist (in the literal sense ;  I don’t mean that I throw Molotov cocktails in to bank offices and never take a bath) — realize that there are some things only society as a whole can reasonably manage.  The problem with European society — British in particular — is that the peoples have become accustomed to their governments’ doing everything ;  inevitably the rate of taxation in Europe is horrendous.

The friend of Jonathan’s Father, for example, in the taxation environment left by the War and the five disastrous years of the Atlee administration would have faced marginal income-tax rates of up to 98% (yes, that’s ninety-eight :  83% income tax and 15% surtax).

The reality is that, unless you be prepared either to move to another jurisdiction (some choose this course) or to elect governments that will pare back the state to reasonable proportions (few seem willing to countenance truly ‘small’ government), a high tax bill is your lot ;  sorry to rain on your parade but you cannot blame H.M.R.C. for your own failure to set the necessary funds aside.

ΠΞ

11
Spiral Architect June 5, 2010 at 04:00

True.

Tax-and-waste and/or tax-and-welfare is the lot of western countries.

It has to be, otherwise the spendthrift ‘dispossessed’ would riot without their pizzas, Stella, cannabis and Jerry Springer.

Those that wars no longer carry off die much longer deaths these days – at the expense of the prudent.

12
Chalcedon June 6, 2010 at 15:19

Taxation: I always thought demanding money with menaces was illegal. You know, a protection racket.