We are 10 days away from our launch date ... the date that we leave our stick built house (the front yard, anyway) and depart on our full time RV adventure. The last hurdle that we faced was/is the finalizing of our home sale. As we got close to the end, we got a call from the attorney's office working on the title. It seems that the Georgia Department of Revenue performed an audit on our 2004 taxes and decided that we had underpaid $150. That would have been a good piece of information to have, but we, for whatever reason, did not receive notification until we 'discovered' the lien on our property. Well, with late fees, interest and several other 'collection' fees. The amount rose to $597.
So, OK. We take it in stride. We have a little money saved up. So, I decide to pay it on line to get it cleared up. Well ... the 3rd party company that handles the payment processing is unable to process taxes older than a couple years old. And even if they did, they wanted a very hefty "convenience" fee. Yes, more fees on top of the fees, penalties and interest. Nice.
So, the next step was to go, in person, to the Department of Revenue and pay off the lien. I took the afternoon off from work and arrived about 1:15 PM. The first thing that I noticed was how beautiful (and expensive) the Department of Revenue building was. And the lobby was also extravagant. It was kind of like a tax collection palace. Yes, I am steaming a bit about how my tax dollars are being spent.
After passing through 2 metal detectors I enter the "customer" service room and stand in line to get a number to stand in line (only government can do that), I finally get to a person ("agent") who is unable to take credit card. She asks me to walk back across the lobby, through another set of metal detectors to the "other" customer service. I then stand in line (I am not exaggerating on this) to get a number for another customer service window.
Now I get another "agent" and let him know that I want to pay my lien with a credit card. He then walks me over to a computer terminal and launches the same 3rd party tool that I found on the web before and ... surprisingly ... he tells me that it can't be done using that method. Also, I find out that using a credit card will not grant me a clearance letter for 30 days. I am now 1 1/2 hours into this process. He says my only option is cash. So, I go out to an ATM and withdraw $600 (plus fees, of course) then go back to stand in line to get a number to get service. Still remaining patient, somehow.
Finally, I pay the bill and I am finished right? No, I just have a receipt. To get the clearance letter I have to go back to the other "customer service" area to inquire about getting a clearance letter. Ok, so I stand in line to get another number and wait ... and wait ... and wait. While I am sitting there, I hear many disgruntled people that are paying unexpected taxes (I guess I am not alone in this issue). After another 1 1/2 hours of waiting, I do get the letter and have finally finished the ordeal.
I did manage to keep my cool during the process, because I have finally learned that it does not do me any good to complain to the workers. They are amazingly incompetent, but it only causes me more problems if I make their job harder. But it is definitely an example of how coercive our governments have become.
Coercion is defined as: The practice of forcing another party to act in an involuntary manner (whether through action or inaction) by use of threats or intimidation
or some other form of pressure or force, and describes a set of various
different similar types of forceful actions that violate the free will
of an individual to induce a desired response. These actions can
include, but are not limited to, extortion, blackmail, torture, and threats to induce favors. In law, coercion is codified as a duress
crime. Such actions are used as leverage, to force the victim to act in
a way contrary to their own interests. Coercion may involve the actual
infliction of physical pain/injury or psychological harm in order to
enhance the credibility of a threat. The threat of further harm may lead to the cooperation or obedience of the person being coerced.
It also reminds me that the government can always go back and re-assess your prior tax payments (that they agreed to) and decide to take more. Therefore, re-enforcing the concept that TAXATION IS THEFT. It is not, even in the least, voluntary.
It has motivated me even more to reduce my taxable income and stop funding this monster. I no longer have the desire to keep making a modest income so I can pay my tributes to our masters. Galt's Gulch is calling.
Everyone stay safe out there and keep your head down.
Until next time,
Happy Trails - Kit
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