End of a 100 year old war taxThis article cheered me up a lot yesterday as I was
preparing my tax returns. Amy Goodman
reminds us to claim a rebate on a tax on telephone charges which was first
imposed during the Spanish-American War of 1898 when telephone usage was the
exclusive privilege of the very wealthy. I claimed my $60 with thanks but the
historian in me made me reflect on why it has taken so long to get rid of this
particular tax and how long it will take to get rid of all the other,
"temporary" war taxes which have been imposed on us since then. I also thought
about how 1898 was a turning point in the history of American imperialism. Up
until that time, American imperial expansion was internal and continental
seizing or "buying" territory from France, Spain, Russia (much like the
expansion of the other great continental empire in the 19thC, Russia). After
that time the US turned its attention to expanding beyond the North American
continent - the Philippines, Cuba, Hawaii - and now, according to Chalmers
Johnson with over 300 military bases in over 130 countries. In another 100 years
time that should produce a very pretty tax refund...
[There is no more]
Posted: Tue - April 10, 2007 at 06:39 PM |
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About David M. Hart
I was born and raised in Sydney, Australia and now work for a non-profit educational foundation in the US. Before moving to the US with my family I taught modern European history at the University of Adelaide, South Australia. I have studied at universities in Australia, Germany, the US, and Britain and consider myself a citizen of the world and a supporter of no particular nation state. [More]
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Total entries in this category: Published On: Apr 10, 2007 06:39 PM |
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