The History of the Income Tax

Having just arrived at the final day of being required to file your tax returns this year, this is a perfect time to present some factual history about how this pariah of the working man came into being. Here's a few questions to peek your interest and use the link here to find out that history:

• Did you know that there was no income tax until the Civil War in our country?
• What did the U.S. Constitution say about taxing individuals?
• Which President naively believed the elimination of tariffs between countries would bring about world peace?
• Who was the original income tax targeting, and by what percent were they taxed in 1913?
• What move did those who were taxed make which was created by Congress?
• Which President instituted the withholding of funds for taxes from paychecks of workers?
• What federal action motivated corporations to move their industrial manufacturing to foreign countries?
• Which President said the following: "Lower rates of taxation will stimulate economic activity and so raise the levels of personal and corporate income as to yield within a few years an increased - not a reduced - flow of revenues to the federal government."

The unfortunate reality is that the vast majority of younger generations now view being taxed as just a normal part of being a U.S. citizen.