Sue the Government

In a broader sense (moving away from fattie lardies who can't control their idiot appetites), I think this idea has merit.

If you subscribed to a service (say, an ISP) on the basis of a set of statements by its management regarding level and quality of service (and an associated price schedule), and over time that same ISP provided a service that was below its promise, of poorer quality than available alternatives, and significantly more expensive than claims in their literature... hell, you would sack those douchebags and get yourself a different ISP, and demand a refund.

Of course if that ISP claimed a monopoly on violence, and sent around a bunch of gun-toting drones in paramilitary dressup, you would be plum outta luck.

There ought to be a movement where each year, people write a letter that they include with their 'tax' returns; something to the effect that -

"Your organisation demands - under threat of kidnapping (and should I resist, death) - that I hand over roughly 50% of everything I make (through direct and indirect taxation, plus my share of the deficit), and then you go do stuff that I find absolutely objectionable; those things that I might accept are public goods, you furnish at lower quality and higher prices than would be the case under perfect competition. You conduct wars with which I disagree, and generally make a nuisance of yourself domestically and overseas. You do this on the basis of some 'social contract' that I have never been asked to sign, the terms of which you arrogate to yourself the right to change without notice to me.

In short, I am thoroughly dissatisfied with the value proposition on offer by your organisation, and would prefer to take my business elsewhere. I continue to permit your theft solely because you would otherwise send armed goons to do me harm, or force me to participate in a 16th century piece of set-piece theatrics to 'justify' your rapine. I consider that every dollar extorted from me by your organisation is still my property, in the same way that my wallet would continue to be my property if I handed it 'voluntarily' to a street mugger.

I wish you nothing but ill, and would like to see you fall.

Sincerely

John Q Public."

It would be a small thing, to be sure - but many things start from small things. People thought that Anonymous' "Operation: Tunisia" was 'slacktivism' when it started... and yet the specific stated objective of that operation - the abdication of Ben Ali and his exile from Tunisia - was achieved today.

Cheerio

GT