More on Mister Snipes.
I don't know what his legal argument is. But it certainly can be no more fantastical than anything our very own Alberto Gonzalez might come up with.
The "income tax" is popularly regarded as the tax laid on your paycheck, dividends, etc.
It is fatally flawed in innumerable ways. Here is just one. When you've read it, roam around town looking beautiful and brooding. You deserve it.
The 16th Amendment, which purports to convey authority to tax one's paycheck, was never ratified. It's no secret. A good book on the matter is "The Law that Never Was." You can read that or watch TV. Your choice.
The Supreme Court, if I recall properly, termed the matter a "political issue." That means, [wink wink] "If the people are willing to tolerate it, then it's not our place to ruin the party."
So you can argue the minutiae of the Internal Revenue Code all day long. But if they claim that the power to tax your paycheck comes from the 16th Amendment, then they have to understand that they're wasting their breath. The code has no basis in law, at least regarding the tax on paychecks.
But you would never successfully argue this in court. As we know, this is a "political question."
That means that it is up to every man to stand on his principles. You will get no help.
I will point out that Mr. Snipes may have erred in filing tax returns at all. If you are going to concede that the tax is lawful, then you have to report your "earnings" truthfully. Or you are guilty of underreporting and tax evasion.
Filing a tax return creates the legal nexus between the natural person and the tax on paychecks.
