Taxes, we have them on our income, our goods, our businesses, our services,
and our property. Water, food, shelter, clothing they are all taxed.   In
Canada, there is almost nothing that we can do that is not taxed.  Sunlight
and fresh air are nearly the only two things people enjoy that aren’t taxed.
(History buffs may be interested to know that European countries used to tax
sunlight, by taxing the number of uncovered windows on a house.)

I don’t like taxes. I don’t like the high rates that take money out of my
pocket, or the complicated forms that I fuss with every year.  I don’t like
how high taxes reduce our standard of living and stifle initiative. While
these are all good reasons to oppose the complicated high tax system we have
in Canada, there is one fundamental problem I have with tax and spend
governments.  They all restrict freedom.

Taxation is a restraint on freedom; it is a form of slavery to the state.
It is a way of coercing behaviour from citizens, it is a way of manipulating
what we do, what we think, and how we act.  When the government taxes
property, it discourages saving and investing for the future:  it
manipulates what we do.  When the government gives subsidies, or tax credits
to advocacy groups or funds the media, it manipulates how we think.  When
the state taxes our incomes it manipulates what we do.

Many Canadians first came to Canada for freedom.  In Saskatchewan, pioneers
came here and settled our province, finding economic, political and
religious freedom.  It was because of this freedom and the better life it
offered that they made Saskatchewan their home.

When we, as Canadians, demand more government spending (and higher taxes
that accompany that spending) we turn our backs on our historical legacy; we
forget our own family histories.  Taxes and government spending need to go
down, not just for a more prosperous Canada, but for a freer one as well.

I’m Brad Trost, your Member of Parliament in Saskatoon-Humboldt. You can
call my office in Saskatoon at 975-6133 or drop by our two offices to visit:
Saskatoon Monday-Friday or Humboldt Tuesday and Wednesday. I always
appreciate your feedback.