Neitherparty wants to cut to ‘sin taxes’ Re: “House Dems declare war on Obama on tax proposal,” Dec. 9 This article has a noteworthy omission: all the “sin” taxes on alcohol, tobacco, firearms, cosmetics, gasoline, and many services and luxuries. While both parties lock horns on who should take credit for tax cuts, the aforementioned “sin” taxes go unscathed and are actually encouraged because they help to stimulate the economy.
For example, U.S. companies profit as the major exporter of tobacco products. And in a world where there are more than 1 billion private autos, most made by the United States and Japan, the tax on gasoline is needed to pay for the huge social impact of the private automobile.
Tax revenue should actually be expanded in the military-industrial complex, which invites academia into for-profit research and feeds hundreds of contractors, subcontractors and individuals. But maintaining a wasteful military hegemony also keeps these taxes artificially low.
We must stop using boring cliches such as “in the spirit of compromise” and invoke a nonpartisan effort toward deficit and national debt reduction. In other words, both parties should “bite the bullet.”
Edward Abramic
Washington
Shariah is incompatible with 14th Amendment
An Oklahoma judge recently struck down as unconstitutional a popular referendum prohibiting the legal implementation of Shariah Islamic law. Unlike Christianity, Islam makes no distinction between rendering unto Caesar and rendering unto God.
Religious freedom is a core American value, reflected in the First Amendment. This individual civil liberty is extended even to members of religious groups whose theologies are at great odds with the majority of Americans. Civil liberties are not subject to cancellation by majoritarian mob-ocracy. On that basis, Muslim Americans should be entitled to practice Shariah if they so wish.
By the same token, the 14th Amendment precludes any dualistic legal system, and equal justice under the law is also a core American value. So we should support religious freedom, including the right for dissenters to leave Islam with zero tolerance for revenge from their religious leaders.
Lawrence K. Marsh
Gaithersburg
Ryan’s hypocrisy exposed in tax cut debate
In January, when Congress returns, I will enjoy hearing Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., screaming about the federal budget.
Why, you ask? Because on television, he said he had “no problems” with increasing the federal budget by about 1 trillion dollars just as long as the Democrats did not tinker with cutting out the richest of the rich in extending the tax cuts.
In my opinion, he is nothing more than a hypocrite.
Jack Donner
Alexandria
