Koretz Korner

Think About It
Dr. Ron Koretz, P.M.

We are all aware of the disastrous oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and the great toll that it is taking on the local inhabitants, particularly those who depend on the water life for their living. Among this group are the fishermen who work in the Louisiana bayous. According to a recent article in the Los Angeles Times, British Petroleum (who will ultimately be paying for all of the damage that their broken drilling operation is causing) has been trying to compensate these small businesspeople for their losses.

However, an interesting glitch has arisen in the compensation program. In order to get the compensation, British Petroleum is asking the claimants to provide some type of validation of their actual losses. In the case of the fishermen, that documentation typically consists of proof of residence, a fishing license, and tax statements. The glitch is that an unknown number of these people have not been paying taxes.

As part of the story, the reporter interviewed several of the residents in the area. One person worried about turning over records to the Internal Revenue Service because “that puts you in the system. If the numbers don’t add up, people who have not been paying taxes are going to regret it.” Another person, who admitted to a failure to pay taxes since 2000, asked for the money to pay back taxes so a tax return could be generated. A third person asked “How can I pay taxes if everything I earned was in cash?”

Interestingly, the local politicians were supportive of their constituents. One of them said that “the bean counters in the Internal Revenue Service do not deal with culture or heritage; they deal with numbers.”

While I have a great deal of sympathy over what has happened to these people, I also am concerned about the message we will make if we reward people who have broken the law.  It is the responsibility of all of us to make society work, and that includes the painful act of paying our taxes. Should some people have it both ways? Actions have consequences; is society responsible for those who knowingly and consciously fail to be responsible to it?

Think about it.