Rants and Ruminations
Asking the Wrong Question
“Taxation is the price which we pay for civilization, for our social, civil and political institutions….” From an 1852 committee report to the Vermont legislature. (https://quoteinvestigator.com/2012/04/13/taxes-civilize/)
Too often the question that gets asked about a measure to avoid taxes is, is it legal? But that’s really the wrong question. I would suggest rephrasing the opening quote as “taxation is a contribution we make for civilization; it’s the seed money we contribute to establish, shape and maintain our social, civil and political institutions, and to insure the benefits that flow from those.”
In that context, the more appropriate questions to ask about a method of tax avoidance are: Is it just? Is it ethical? Does it have more plusses than minuses when considered against the purposes for which we tax? And only then the question, should it be legal? Read More-->
Road Trip in Our New EV
In May 2022 my wife and I bought our first EV. In June we took our first road trip, 400+ miles each way from Western Massachusetts to Washington DC. Here are a few reflections on the EV purchase and the road trip.
The EV we purchased is a 2022 Nissan LEAF. We bought it the first day we started looking at EV’s, so we didn’t do a lot of any research or test-driving. This is what we knew when we bought the Leaf:
1) It would be at least a month before we got the vehicle, and we would have to take whatever color (red) and features (heated seats and steering wheel) the car that was coming had rather than choosing these things as part of our order. EV’s were in incredibly short supply. Most dealers in western Massachusetts didn’t even have one we could test drive. Read More-->