Some governments are better than others, but there is not a really good government on the face of the earth that raises its revenues by indirect taxation. It is impossible. Such a government must rob one citizen of wealth to enrich another; it must impoverish millions of consumers to favor a few hundreds or thousands of producers. It cannot be just. The wit of man cannot devise a method by which a government can make one citizen a favorite without making other citizens victims. . . .
We shall learn if we enquire: To whom does rent belong? We are speaking of economic rent solely—rent of land or other franchise or privilege. Most assuredly economic rent belongs to the general community which creates it. It cannot belong to the laborer. He has done no more to create it than any other man. And this is true of the capitalist, and it is just as true of the ground landlord. He has done no more to create rent value (site value) than has the tenant or any other man. The value, ground rent, is communal value, created solely by the community, and should be appropriated by the community for public use. It is the natural revenue which nature provides; and when men first allowed this natural public revenue to be diverted into private hands they let loose a whole train of social evils on mankind.
It is easier to point out the economic errors into which past generations of mankind have strayed than to provide a proper remedy. That must be a work of time and thought and education and statesmanship. But the first absolutely necessary step to be taken is to learn and understand and acknowledge the error. When that is done statesmen will be confronted with the most important problem of the age — the introduction of a method of raising public revenues that shall be natural, unburdensome, impartial and just.
GOVERNMENT AND REVENUE
Notwithstanding the contentions of philosophical anarchists and extreme individualists some form of organized government is an absolute necessity of human society. No condition of human society, however perfect, can be imagined in which organized government would not be necessary. If government were no longer necessary for the suppression of crime, if every individual were a sincere altruist, an established authority would still be required to decide on the thousand etceteras of streets, roads, railways, bridges, schools, inheritances and many other things which could not possibly be left to individual initiative and control.
It is equally clear and equally true that government requires public revenue. Society could not exist without government, and government could not exist without revenue. The matter of taxation is the most important question that can engage the attention of citizens; and, more vitally than any other question, it concerns their material and social conditions.