Christopher Ruddy
Wednesday, March 20, 2002

Six hundred years ago in medieval Europe, most people lived and died as slaves, sometimes called serfs, bound to the land they worked and bound to the lords who ruled them.

The serfs had no rights. Their masters could seize anything they owned and even put them in prison if they didn't pay whatever was demanded.

How much did these oppressed Medieval serfs actually pay in taxes? The answer is about 25 percent of what they earned. Historians believe that the typical serf had to "pay" 25 percent of his produce, usually from agricultural efforts, to his feudal lord. What remained was his bounty.

Today the average American considers himself free, yet we pay even more in taxes than Medieval serfs.

As you'll see, over the course of a lifetime 50 percent of our income and wealth now goes for federal taxes, state taxes, Social Security taxes, property taxes, inventory tax, sales tax – the list just goes on and on and continues until a person dies and has to pay estate taxes.

In many ways, the tax laws and IRS enslave us as completely as Medieval serfs. For at least four months a year, you are a tax slave.

According to the Tax Foundation, last year the average American worked 123 days for the government. That means for over 1/3 of the year – from Jan. 1 to May 3 – you are a tax slave.

It's even worse if your income is above average or you live in a high-tax state like New York or California. In those states, over 40 percent of your income is deducted from your paycheck.

But the May 3 date may be too early and the 30 percent to 40 percent is by no means all you pay in total taxes.

You also have to add in dozens of hidden taxes, which nearly double the price of everything you buy, plus tax compliance costs – such as the cost of hiring accountants and bookkeepers to comply with the tax laws, inheritance tax, IRS penalties, interest and late fees.

Once you add in all of these hidden taxes and costs, the total you pay in taxes is now over 50 percent of your income.

If 40 percent of your income went to taxes and expenses directly related to your taxes, you would assume the other 60 percent is free and clear – your rightfully earned money.

Wrong. Then the "hidden-hidden" taxes kick in.

Consider that every product and service you buy is offered to you by a business that has to pay corporate taxes. These taxes are not really paid by corporations, they are simply passed along in the cost of the product or service, so you, the consumer, in effect pay the business tax – in addition to sales tax or special excise taxes on things like gasoline that have dramatically inflated prices.

There are still more hidden-hidden taxes, including the cost of government regulation of business. That, too, is passed along to you, the consumer.

And then there is the tax few people consider, the estate tax. Estate and inheritance taxes kick in after a citizen dies – and the government comes in to confiscate up to 50 percent of your wealth.

This is money that rightfully should have been passed on to your family and heirs, but because the government considers you a serf of the state, it excises a tremendous toll on your wealth as you pass from this life to the next.

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