In a recent blog post Melissa Etheridge stated that she did not plan on paying her California State Income Taxes due to the passage of Proposition 8 which bans gay marriage. In Etheridge's view she is not treated as an equal person in California see the tax as "taxation without representation".
While I am sympathetic to her cause and believe that she has a point it is never a good idea to not pay your taxes because you disagree with a government policy. It's something that you cannot win and all you will do is add interest and penalties and perhaps even jail time on the amounts that are owed. Charles Merrill, of the Merrill Lynch family, is currently facing 3 years in prison for refusing to pay taxes after the passage of the Defense of Marriage act.
While Etheridge's stand is sure to get some attention, this is not the first time people have refused to pay income taxes over a dispute with governmental policy. The Iraq War spurred some to refuse to pay Federal taxes. There is a group of people who believe the income tax law to be unconsitutional and refuse to pay.
While any of these causes may have a good rationale behind them it is important to note that they never win.
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