XPost: talk.religion.buddhism, alt.zen, alt.philosophy.zen   
   XPost: alt.buddha.short.fat.guy   
   From: lrudolph@panix.com   
      
   tri cycle  writes:   
      
   >On 14/08/2010 11:20 PM, Jigme Dorje wrote:   
   >>   
   >> Churches are good for something.   
   >> Someday we may figure out what.   
   >   
   >here they do charity work the government doesn't.   
      
   Which is (effectively) paid for by those taxpayers   
   who have to make up, with the taxes they pay, for   
   the tax exemptions enjoyed by "churches" and   
   "charities" (when recognized by the government,   
   when of course only in those cases--which are,   
   however, by far the most numerous--in which the   
   tax exemption is claimed).   
      
   In effect, "charitable exemptions" (and, much   
   worse, tax exemptions for not-even-colorably   
   "charitable" religious instutions) are--like   
   "foundations" with other ostensible purposes   
   (like "education") are a way of letting   
   persons and institutions who are not even   
   *formally* instructed by the general populace   
   choose how taxes paid by the general populace   
   shall be spent.  Fuck it.   
      
   Lee Rudolph   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)