Income Taxes Help - Can you really refuse to pay Federal Income Taxes?

Can you really refuse to pay Federal Income Taxes?

In www.zeitgeistmovie.com the last section refers to the Federal Reserve Bank as "about as Federal as Federal Express" and that the Income Tax law was never approved, then it goes on to interview IRS agents who haven't paid taxes in years...how then did they nail Al Cappone for Tax Evasion and how safe is it to play that game? NOTE: I pay my taxes and on time! I was just curious about the zeitgeist movie footage. So far Bostonia get's my vote for best answer...

Public Comments

sure you can refuse, if you dont mind going to jail No one has ever successfully won a court decision to not pay income taxes.
Sure, you can refuse to pay anything you want, but just like refusing to pay for a car after you've driven it off the lot, you'll eventually end up in jail (and in serious debt) for refusing to pay taxes
u can refuse.. and get almost lucky like Wesly Snipes.. but then again... u can just maybe serve some time and be in jail with him...
anyone can refuse to pay. but once you are caught,,,,,,,,, you will have so many fines, and late charges, and interest payments, etc....you might never be able to pay it off. NOT SAFE, to play waht you call the ....."game".
only if you're somebody like Wesley Snipes,,,he was just acquitted of tax evasion charges..He hadn't payed for a couple of years or so...There is some question whether Federal Income Tax is legal, but the government keeps collecting it and if nothing else, keeps indicting people who don't pay...There have been other celebrities who have lost a lot over not paying..Redd Foxx and Willie Nelson come to mind...Sharp minds have tried to get it declared unlawful for the govt. to collect, but so far as i know it is still the law...
Don't even think about it. There have been several people who thought they didn't have to pay. Some were put in jail and the rest not only paid the back taxes but fines and penalty's. It's a wonderful dream, but not reality. Whether it is legal or not does not matter to the government. They get what they want. Forget about it and sleep good at night!
Sure, you can refuse to pay taxes. But it may cost you more hiring a good lawer to defend you. Remember, the Government has practically an unlimited budget and will, if nothing else bury you in legal expenses. Even then, you may not win and will incure penalties, possible jail time and you may even be held resposible for the government's legal expenses. Law makers have given the the IRS the power of God. I've followed some the same stories myself through the years and it's always an interesting and somewhat compelling conversation, but I would say it's a slippery slope you're going up at best.
Sure you can refuse BUT you will have the consequences to deal with. I have to chuckle at their reference to the Fed though, given that that movie is about as factual as Cinderella or Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Their claim that the income tax law was never "approved" is absurd on its face. The courts have ruled countless times that it IS the law of the land, contrary to their idiotic claims. There have been a few rogue IRS agents who fell into the Tax Kook trap but they ALL paid their taxes in the end and a few were even prosecuted for tax evasion. A few Tax Kooks have managed to dodge the bullet on CRIMMINAL charges of tax evasion (the government's burden of proof is unusually tough) but not a SINGLE one of them avoided the civil liability to pay the taxes due. By the time that they paid up, many paid as much as TEN TIMES what they would have paid had they paid on time. IMHO, that is a textbook definition of STOOPID!
I know first hand of people who played, and still play that game... You need to be totally informed on your "obligations" and "rights"... You have to play the game correctly.. once you sign a form and you are in a "contract"... you are in it.. and they will chase you down, threaten you, rob you of your peaceful life .. it can ruin your family, and everyone around you will feel really uneasy, because they will think you are a "criminal" because people still believe in the "system"... Unless there are "many "with you, who would like to "challenge" the income tax law, and unless you have good nerves, I would just blend in... life is way too short, to waste precious hours.... sleepless nights ... worrying.....
The income tax law was approved. If you refuse to pay, they will either take your money (more than the amount that you saved by refusing to pay) or arrest you.
You can refuse if you don't mind having your assets seized, and maybe going to prison. You need to distinguish between movies and reality.
Can you refuse to pay Federal Income Taxes? Yes, but the government will simply follow the law and take what you should have paid plus more. Let's make this simple. There is a law concerning income taxes. It is codified as Title 26 of the U.S. Code. You can read it at http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/uscode26/usc_sup_01_26.html or at http://www.access.gpo.gov/uscode/title26/title26.html or at http://uscode.house.gov/download/title_26.shtml Title 26 is law in case someone tells you it isn't. Congress has the power to pass income tax laws in accordance to the Constitution. You can read the Constitution at http://www.senate.gov/civics/constitution_item/constitution.htm In Article 1, Section 8, it states, in part, "The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect TAXES, Duties, Imposts and Excises..." That section only declares that taxes must be uniform throughout the United States. That simply means that people in identical situations should pay the same amount. In Article 1, Section 9, the Constitution states, in part, "No Capitation, or other direct, Tax shall be laid, unless in Proportion to the Census..." That basically means that taxes that are considered direct taxes must be apportioned. For example, a direct tax has to be levied in accordance to the population of the state. So, if state 'A' has a population of 50,000 and state 'B' has a population of 100,000, the state 'B' should pay twice as much direct taxes as state 'A'. Now, many people believe that income taxes are direct taxes. However, since the beginning of this nation, direct taxes have always been defined as capitation or poll taxes and taxes on land. A tax on income derived from compensation for labor, has always been defined as a 'duty or excise' and therefore indirect. In 1895, the Supreme Court decided that a tax on income from personal property, i.e. rental income, was the same as a tax on the property itself and therefore a direct tax. That made the law at the time unconstitutional. In order to clarify the ability of Congress to lay an income tax, the 16th amendment was proposed, passed, ratified as an amendment to the Constitution. It states, "The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census or enumeration." What than means is that Congress can lay and collect an income tax, even an income tax on rental income, without it having to be apportioned. Basically, even if an income tax is considered a direct tax, the 16th amendment allows Congress to lay and collect it. Re: Income tax law was never approved. Bull crap. They are probably referring to an absolutely ridiculous argument that the 16th amendment was not properly ratified. Go to http://evans-legal.com/dan/tpfaq.html#ratification to see why that argument is wrong. Also, the main proponent of that argument has already served prison time for trying that argument in his own tax case. After he got out of prison, he again started selling the same idea on the Internet. The government has won an injunction against him permanently enjoining him from promoting a fraudulent tax scheme. Re: Interview with IRS agents I have not seen the movie in its entirety, however, every so often, even IRS agents get duped by the tax protester arguments. Also, an Enrolled Agent is not usually an IRS employee. An Enrolled Agent is usually a tax practitioner who has been licensed by the Federal Government to represent taxpayers in front of the IRS. BTW, Sherry Peel Jackson, a CPA from Georgia, also bought into many of these frivolous anti-tax arguments, was recently convicted of tax evasion and failure to file tax returns. She will be sentenced later this month. Re: Federal Reserve isn't federal More conspiracy theory nonsense. The Federal Reserve is governed by a Board of Governors. That Board of Governors are all selected by the President and confirmed by the Senate. No member of the Board can be an officer, director or employee of ANY BANK, BANKING INSTITUTION or TRUST COMPANY. Generally, Board members are simply really smart economics professors. The Federal Reserve is setup by law that was enacted by Congress. Congress could also dissolve the Federal Reserve if it so desired. For more information on the Federal Reserve, go to http://www.federalreserveeducation.com/FRED/?CFID=7569570&CFTOKEN=70207963 and http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=ArzOMGgsm54KU5LINOyjDp_ty6IX;_ylv=3?qid=20080127205031AA29wab Finally, the person who claims that once you sign a form you are in a "contract" and that by somehow never signing a form you are not "contracting" with the government is full of B.S. In nited States v. Sloan, 939 F.2d 499, 501 (7th Cir. 1991), cert. den. 112 S.Ct. 940 (1992), the court stated, "All individuals, freeborn and nonfreeborn, natural and unnatural alike, must pay federal income tax on their wages, regardless of whether they have requested, obtained or exercised any privilege from the federal government." Also, The claim that “Only persons who have contracted with the government are subject to tax” has been identified by the IRS as a “frivolous position” that can result in a penalty of $5,000 when asserted in a tax return or included in certain collection-related submissions. See http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-irbs/irb07-14.pdf Re: How safe is it to play that game? Ask Wesley Snipes, Bill Benson, Willy Nelson, Irwin Schiff, Ed and Elaine Brown, Larken Rose, Sherry Peel Jackson, Ray Pope, Richard Simkanin, Pete Hendrickson, etc. etc. etc. Basically, the game goes like this. You don't pay taxes. The IRS finds out and starts sending you notices and assessing penalties. If you don't pay or make an offer to pay, the IRS starts garnishing wages, and placing liens on your assets. If you really decide to fight, the IRS may just take you to civil court. There, unless in the extremely unlikely chance that the IRS screwed up, you will lose. If you really P.O. the IRS, they will take you to criminal court before civil court. There are only one of two outcomes. First, and most likely, you will lose, you will go to prison and you will STILL OWE all of those taxes and penalties. Second, if you do get acquitted of criminal charges, you will STILL owe the taxes and penalties. As Bostonian said, STOOPID.