Interview w/ Gary Beacom
bex Hunter
Paul Martini has posted an interesting interview with
Gary Beacom at
http://www.iskater.com/spotlight/gbeacom.htm
Answers a lot of the questions asked here recently
Where he is now? Vancouver, British Columbia
Can he return to the US? No. Banned for life.
Is he skating again? Yes.
Personal life? He just got married to Deena Woodley.
-B
--
Beckie Hunter b...@world.std.com
"Profound is a firm grasp of the obvious."
barbk
bex Hunter wrote:
> Paul Martini has posted an interesting interview with
> Gary Beacom at
>
> http://www.iskater.com/spotlight/gbeacom.htm
>
> Answers a lot of the questions asked here recently
>
> Where he is now? Vancouver, British Columbia
>
> Can he return to the US? No. Banned for life.
>
> Is he skating again? Yes.
>
> Personal life? He just got married to Deena Woodley.
>
>
There are some people for whom you feel more sympathy after reading
their side of the story. Gary isn't one of them, at least for me. I
found myself saying, "Good!, Good!" when he mentioned that he'd been
permanently excluded from the USA.
I note that he didn't make any mention about paying Canadian taxes,
though perhaps he feels differently about paying taxes to Canada than he
did in paying them to the US. Is tax evasion prosecuted in Canada?
Cheers,
Barb K.
Ron Ng
>Gary Beacom
There's nothing interesting about a tax evader.
Ron Ng Knows!
Isiafs5
certainly most of us pay federal and state tax. We benefit from from the
taxes.
So this guy feels he has some sort of technicality and goes to jail for months
and years rather than admit he is wrong.
I have to guess he is truly a true artist .... anguished and all from his
unnecessary maladjustment. With this new toment his art can only improve and
provide a nice diversion from the traditional, conservative skating competition
that lives mostly via announcer hype and awareness from fans.
Sling Skate
Tracy Johnson
> I note that [Gary Beacom] didn't make any mention about paying Canadian
> taxes,
> though perhaps he feels differently about paying taxes to Canada than he
> did in paying them to the US. Is tax evasion prosecuted in Canada?
Yup, it sure is.
Tracy
David Fraser
wrote:
Without having actually checked out his philosophical reasons for not
paying taxes, it's probably based on somebody's interpretation that
the US Constitution does not allow for income tax. However, since
Canada has a different Constitution, I don't think the "Idaho Tax
Philosophy" applies :-)
So he'll probably pay taxes happily.
Regards, Dave Fraser (dfr...@nbnet.nb.ca)
Home Page: http://personal.nbnet.nb.ca/dfraser
DG511
writes:
>On Mon, 19 Feb 2001 16:59:13 -0800, Tracy Johnson <tljo...@home.com>
>wrote:
>
>>barbk wrote:
>>
>>> I note that [Gary Beacom] didn't make any mention about paying Canadian
>>> taxes,
>>> though perhaps he feels differently about paying taxes to Canada than he
>>> did in paying them to the US. Is tax evasion prosecuted in Canada?
>>
>>Yup, it sure is.
>
>Without having actually checked out his philosophical reasons for not
>paying taxes, it's probably based on somebody's interpretation that
>the US Constitution does not allow for income tax.
Yeah, but that "interpretation" is a real stretch and has been shot down
repeatedly and from every direction in the courts. It takes a real moronic
scofflaw to take it on these days. Somebody who wants to go to jail or be
deported, basically.
However, since
>Canada has a different Constitution, I don't think the "Idaho Tax
>Philosophy" applies :-)
>So he'll probably pay taxes happily.
I doubt the "happily" part. I suspect he was living stateside for a number of
reasons, only one of which was this bozo notion of not having to pay taxes.
Daria
soobelle
"bex Hunter" <b...@world.std.com> wrote in message
news:G90sE...@world.std.com...
|
| Paul Martini has posted an interesting interview with
| Gary Beacom at
|
| http://www.iskater.com/spotlight/gbeacom.htm
Gary also has some interesting comments on the "figures" side of
skating. The interview is well worth reading, whether you agree with
his opinions or not.
Ann Watson
dsch...@direct.ca
May I be allowed a few observations on the various interpretations of
and responses to Paul's "interview" with Gary? (And I put interview
in quotes, because this appears obviously to be a set of written
responses by Gary to a list of written questions by Paul, rather than
a face-to-face interview.)
1. Gary says he lives in Victoria, not Vancouver, as everyone seems
to think.
2. Before criticisizing either Gary's intelligence or motives, it
might be a good idea to find out what he's talking about: specifically
US tax law regarding the relationship of state income taxes to
federal. Once you've mastered that, your opinions might have some
substance.
3. If you want to get annoyed about tax evasion, try Marc Rich,
pardoned in the last moments of his presidency by Bill Clinton, after
being charged with evading $46 million in US taxes. Rich's wife,
apparently, gave generously to the Democratic Party and other Clinton
projects. Gary's sins are the equivalent of jay-walking.
4. Do I hear someone saying: Well, the amount doesn't matter, it's
the principle that counts? That what Gary say too.
Cheers... ...dirk
Hattie54
>4. Do I hear someone saying: Well, the amount doesn't matter, it's
>the principle that counts? That what Gary say too.
>
>Cheers... ...dirk
When is he going to pay his Canadian taxes ? When he feels like it ? ROTFL. He
should be in jail in Canada .
Harriet
Tracy Johnson
> Of course. As if ANY country is going to let its citizens get away with
> not paying taxes when they are required to! *snort*. Besides which,
> Gary's problem has never been with paying *U.S.* taxes vs. paying
> *Canadian* taxes. It is obvious to anyone doing any reading about his
> situation that he has fallen in with some pretty politically radical
> people, and that he is philosophically opposed to *anyone* having to pay
> *any* taxes to *any* country at all. True, only the U.S. has imprisoned
> him for tax evasion so far, but I have no doubt that eventually Revenue
> Canada will also demand its pound of flesh from him.
I confess to having studiously avoided any in-depth discussions of his
philosophies, because the whole thing irritates me. However, if you're right,
Trudi, then you'd better believe that Canada will go after him. The Canadian
government has done some pretty hard-hearted things in pursuit of tax evaders,
and I'm sure they won't have any qualms about going after good ol' Gary. And I'd
be all for that. My life would be a whole lot easier if *I* didn't have to pay
taxes, but I do pay taxes because it's required of me as a citizen of Canada. I
don't feel much pity for people in Gary's income tax bracket who refuse to pay
taxes, no matter *what* their grounds.
David Fraser wrote:
> Without having actually checked out his philosophical reasons for not
> paying taxes, it's probably based on somebody's interpretation that
> the US Constitution does not allow for income tax. However, since
> Canada has a different Constitution, I don't think the "Idaho Tax
> Philosophy" applies :-)
Well, there is a fairly active and well-known group in Canada who claims that
Canadians technically have no obligation constitutionally or legally to pay
taxes, so I'm sure Gary will be in cahoots with them in no time, or at least
will use their arguments to defend his choices re: not paying taxes.
Tracy
David
>situation that he has fallen in with some pretty politically radical
>people
Yes, Trudi, I believe that Gary Beacom is a libertarian, which means he
follows the line of political thought that people should determine how to spend
their own money. They are opposed to redistributive governmental policies,
because the government will supposedly take his money, decide how it should be
spent, and then spend it inefficiently.
Hope this hasn't gotten too far off-topic.
:-)
David
Fiona McQuarrie
: 2. Before criticisizing either Gary's intelligence or motives, it
: might be a good idea to find out what he's talking about: specifically
: US tax law regarding the relationship of state income taxes to
: federal. Once you've mastered that, your opinions might have some
: substance.
I have read about it - in fact, I just read a whole book about the Freemen
movement, who embrace this philosophy - and I still think it's ridiculous.
Dirk, why are you assuming that the people making the statements you are
so upset about *aren't* familiar with this law? Could it just, maybe,
possibly be that they are and they don't agree with Beacom's
interpretation of it?
Cheers, Fiona
kbra...@binghamton.edu
> movement, who embrace this philosophy - and I still think it's ridiculous.
> Dirk, why are you assuming that the people making the statements you are
> so upset about *aren't* familiar with this law? Could it just, maybe,
> possibly be that they are and they don't agree with Beacom's
> interpretation of it?
>
And, additionally, he seems to be assuming that people who disagree with
Beacom shouldn't be all that concerned, because of the Rich pardon. ???
It's possible to be concerned about tax evasion, period -- in part because
many people think it's important to obey the law, even if one in principle
doesn't agree with it, and in part because many people just flat-out
disagree with Beacom on the substance of the matter. I've never been a
big fan of the rationale that <well, other people have done worse, so we
just won't worry about this>.
I suspect that the reason why the government is so harsh on tax evaders --
many governments, not just the U.S. -- is because there's a concern that
if government ignores the 'jaywalking' versions of tax evasion (as dirk
put it), then many, many people would begin to jaywalk.
-- Kate
MJsk8
"He plumbed the depths of dialectical conceptualization with keen perspicacity
and thoroughness"
MaryJo
michael farris
David wrote:
> Yes, Trudi, I believe that Gary Beacom is a libertarian, which means he
> follows the line of political thought that people should determine how to spend
> their own money. They are opposed to redistributive governmental policies,
> because the government will supposedly take his money, decide how it should be
> spent, and then spend it inefficiently.
Like supporting eligible figure skaters?
-mike farris
michael farris
MJsk8 wrote:
And here _I_ was, stupidly thinking he had sounded the range of the postmodern
structuralist critique with a sprite patina of nimble translocation.
I _hate_ it when that happens ....
--mike farris (still fuming)
Randy Simcox
This tax dung aside... All I know is I miss seeing him perform. He was always a
highlight of the ice shows where I saw him skate, and now that he will only
skate in Canada I'm guessing I shant see his style again.
Randy
di...@canada.com
> I just read a whole book about the Freemen
>movement, who embrace this philosophy - and I still think it's ridiculous.
>Dirk, why are you assuming that the people making the statements you are
>so upset about *aren't* familiar with this law? Could it just, maybe,
>possibly be that they are and they don't agree with Beacom's
>interpretation of it?
Thank you Fiona, for actually finding out something about the issues:
but I think you're a minority of one, in this group. I doubt that I
could learn enough tax law between now and the next millenium to feel
competent to pass judgment on individual cases I have not seen details
of.
Why I am "so upset", which I amn't, is, of course, at both the
readiness of others to pass judgment on an issue that does not seem to
be as clear as simply "guilty" or "innocent" - but rather involves
minutely fine points of law (as, yes, all tax law does) subject to
varying legitimate interpretations - and at the low moral tone -
"serves the bastard right" - taken by most of the people commenting
here.
As well as the consistent refusal to recognize that it is possible to
a) legally disagree with the dictates of one's state, b) undertake a
legal defense of that position, and c) be found in error, without
thereby committing a major moral transgression.
Cheers... ...dirk
di...@canada.com
>When is he going to pay his Canadian taxes ? When he feels like it ? ROTFL. He
>should be in jail in Canada .
Presumably when there are some to be paid as, as far as I know, he did
all the years he was in Canada. But right now, living with his
parents and working on three books, it doesn't sound to me like he's
making enough to have to pay them.
On the other hand: if you're from AOL in the US, what do you care
about Canadian taxes? And if you're not from the US, what do you care
about American taxes?
I know, you were just trying to be a good Samaritan...
Cheers...
...dirk
Robert Dister
dg...@aol.compelling (DG511) wrote:
> >dfr...@nbnet.nb.ca (David Fraser)
>
> writes:
>
> >On Mon, 19 Feb 2001 16:59:13 -0800, Tracy Johnson <tljo...@home.com>
> >wrote:
> >
> >>barbk wrote:
> >>
> >>> I note that [Gary Beacom] didn't make any mention about paying Canadian
> >>> taxes,
> >>> though perhaps he feels differently about paying taxes to Canada than he
> >>> did in paying them to the US. Is tax evasion prosecuted in Canada?
> >>
> >>Yup, it sure is.
> >
> >Without having actually checked out his philosophical reasons for not
> >paying taxes, it's probably based on somebody's interpretation that
> >the US Constitution does not allow for income tax.
>
> Yeah, but that "interpretation" is a real stretch and has been shot down
> repeatedly and from every direction in the courts. It takes a real moronic
> scofflaw to take it on these days. Somebody who wants to go to jail or be
> deported, basically.
>
snip
No kidding. I can't believe that these imbeciles think that they can get
away with not paying income tax because of some correspondence school
lawyer's discredited interpretation of tax law. I used to work with a
medical doctor who was as out in left field as Beacom, and my eyes would
glaze over as he'd lecture me on the meaning of "the several states" and
how the income tax only applied to people living in Puerto Rico, Guam, and
Washington, D.C. (good reason to live in Bethesda...). I love it when
people stand up for their "principles", such as freeloading off the rest
of us who pay for the roads, National Parks, and dropping bombs on Iraq.
Hattie54
>about Canadian taxes? And if you're not from the US, what do you care
>about American taxes?
>
>I know, you were just trying to be a good Samaritan...
>
>Cheers...
dirk
Lets hope you've paid your taxes this year ?? My hubby and I pay mine , beats
sitting in jail .
Harriet
DG511
writes, of Hattie:
>On the other hand: if you're from AOL in the US, what do you care
>about Canadian taxes? And if you're not from the US, what do you care
>about American taxes?
Oh, well, then, why should anyone be interested in anything beyond their own
neighborhood? First you berate us for not displaying credentials as legal
scholars, and now you mock us for having concerns beyond our doorsteps.
Meanwhile, your contribution has been zilch. I think you go into my killfile
box, as a chummer.
Daria
Hattie54
>box, as a chummer.
>
>Daria
LOL, Dirky sounds just as irky as kooky Gary .
Harriet
Rick
>soobelle wrote:
>>
>> "bex Hunter" <b...@world.std.com> wrote in message
>> news:G90sE...@world.std.com...
>> |
>> | Paul Martini has posted an interesting interview with
>> | Gary Beacom at
>> |
>> | http://www.iskater.com/spotlight/gbeacom.htm
>>
>> Gary also has some interesting comments on the "figures" side of
>> skating. The interview is well worth reading, whether you agree with
>> his opinions or not.
>>
>> Ann Watson
>
>This tax dung aside...
Back to skating :^)
>All I know is I miss seeing him perform. He was always a
>highlight of the ice shows where I saw him skate, and now that he will only
>skate in Canada I'm guessing I shant see his style again.
I feel like I've missed an awful lot of great skaters over the years like
Beacom, Curry and Cranston. I'd sure like to hear from you old-timers what
his skating was like, how he was innovative, how it differs from I'm seeing
today, and if there's anyone today is a little like him or was influenced by
him.
TIA for any input.
- Rick
MJsk8
>This tax dung aside... All I know is I miss seeing him perform. He was always
>a
>highlight of the ice shows where I saw him skate, and now that he will only
>skate in Canada I'm guessing I shant see his style again.
As will I. I wonder if he will get any major work. I usually travel to Canada
once a year to watch skating. Perhaps I may have a chance.
MaryJo
Shillelagh
"Rick" <pl1_alp...@juNOSPAM.com> wrote in message
news:96unif$mij$1...@sshuraac-i-1.production.compuserve.com...
>
> I feel like I've missed an awful lot of great skaters over the years like
> Beacom, Curry and Cranston. I'd sure like to hear from you old-timers what
> his skating was like, how he was innovative, how it differs from I'm
seeing
> today, and if there's anyone today is a little like him or was influenced
by
> him.
>
> TIA for any input.
>
> - Rick
I will not discuss the tax issue - only Beacom's skating. I love his
skating - it's very quirky and different - you definitely will not see
anyone else skate the way he does. He has/had one program in particular
that I just love and have somewhere on one of my many tapes. He is in a
black jumpsuit thing complete with hood and face cover and it's like he's a
shadow - it's so hard to describe his skating - he doesn't/didn't jump
much - but it wasn't necessary - he skated like a rubber man - no bones -
and could do splits and bounce right back up and keep skating. Lots of edge
stuff, weaving back and forth - aaaaargh - you have to SEE him - I just
cannot do his skating justice trying to describe it - maybe some of the
other posters here can do a better job...
Curry and Cranston were out of this world. I think that Toller Cranston is
probably my all time favourite skater. I loved his leg extensions, and he
was one of the few males that would/could do a fabulous spiral - and wasn't
afraid to do one. I like the spin he did where he lifted his leg, bent at
the knee and held onto the knee - such a beautiful line - I'd love to see
him do a Charlotte. He always used his music so beautifully... can you
tell I'm a fan of his??? I'm glad I have some of his work on tape.
Shelagh
DG511
asks:
>I'd sure like to hear from you old-timers what
>his skating was like, how he was innovative, how it differs from I'm seeing
>today, and if there's anyone today is a little like him or was influenced by
him.
Others have seen more of Beacom, but I have to say that I sense a similar
spirit in Ilia Kulik's experimentation these days.
Daria
Ron Ng
I don't. He was a boring skater who didn't really do anything original at all.
On top of that, his technqieu was lousy and his ego was (and is) too big.
Ron Ng Knows!
barbk
David wrote:
Well, I have been wondering (in the tradition of "Skate Canada") whether the taxing
authority is called "Tax Canada" -- does that count? And if you don't pay your
taxes are you put in "Jail Canada"?
Cheers,
Barb K.
Randy Simcox
I do. He was (is) an extremely gifted innovator who had originality oozing from
him. His technique may have been sub-standard and his ego I didn't care about,
but he is a joy to watch at an ice show... the crowd always agreed too no matter
what mr Ng says... usually the biggest applause of anyone.
Randy
Julie Rosso
glasses even gave him that look.
Beacom did a piece with Gia Guddat where they wore skates on, and skated on,
both their hands and their feet. He also did a solo piece to Leonard
Cohen's "I'm Your Man" that was pretty well known.
Sometimes he would skate in a style where he would seem to deliberately lose
his balance and constantly catch himself. It's hard to describe. He didn't
look like he was falling down, it was just...interesting.
I liked him a lot before this tax thing.
Julie
"DG511" <dg...@aol.compelling> wrote in message
news:20010220181934...@ng-fx1.aol.com...
Morgan Dhu
>
>
>Well, I have been wondering (in the tradition of "Skate Canada") whether the taxing
>authority is called "Tax Canada" -- does that count? And if you don't pay your
>taxes are you put in "Jail Canada"?
Close...
Revenue Canada and Corrections Canada... <g>
- Morgan Dhu
==============================================================
If you have two loaves of bread, sell one and buy a hyacinth.
==============================================================
Kaiju
I agree. Kulik does seem to be taking up the mantle from Beacom. Except
Kulik has the jumps.
Kaiju
--
Before you think, think.
di...@canada.com
What's funny about these posts is that - read the interview and
Martini's comments there - Gary was actually one of the best
technicians, at school figures, that we have ever had, and it was his
strength there that led him to be able to compete successfully at the
amateur level.
It was only his jumps that he had trouble with.
As a technician - not just school figures - the man is - was - capab;e
of foing things with his edges and body balance that are roughly
incredible: if there is an analogy here, he is to figure skating what
Louis Armstrong was to music: most trumpet players, when they first
heard Louis, insisted that what he did with a trumpet could not be
done. Or wasn't music.
Same with Gary...
Cheers... ...dirk
dsch...@direct.ca
Kulik is only one of about everybody - except maybe Elvis - that has
benefitted from, or tried to work with Gary's innovations. Try
Scott's sor Kurt's footwork, before and after they saw Gary. Try
hydroblading, which he was not the first to do, but the first to do
well. Try almost any French skater, other than Candeloro, for his
body-work. Currently, most of the choreography that Sasha Zhulin has
been doing for various people shows his influence almost everywhere.
The man was - or is, haven't seen him lately - the most incredible
technician that skating has ever seen, period. He was a poor jumper.
So was Secretariat.
Cheers... ...dirk
TFBWWW
>
and his ability to comply with the law!
TFBWWW
~August 1, 1999 - the day my prayers were answered!~
Shillelagh
"Morgan Dhu" <moo...@istar.ca> wrote in message
news:3a934dcf...@news.psi.ca...
> barbk <bm...@qwest.net> wrote:
> >Well, I have been wondering (in the tradition of "Skate Canada") whether
the taxing
> >authority is called "Tax Canada" -- does that count? And if you don't
pay your
> >taxes are you put in "Jail Canada"?
>
> Close...
> Revenue Canada and Corrections Canada... <g>
> - Morgan Dhu
Close - but Revenue Canada has been combined with the Customs department and
they have come up with another name - are you ready??? Ta da - here it
is:
Canada Customs and Revenue Agency
Shelagh
MJsk8
>The man was - or is, haven't seen him lately - the most incredible
>technician that skating has ever seen, period. He was a poor jumper.
>So was Secretariat
How about some of his spin positions. Not sure if they were named or how to
describe them, but he would perform a scratch spin with his feet turned the
wrong direction, or in a position that was so off balanced I don't know how he
could stand up. As far as jumps go, well with Gary the first thing that comes
to my mind is who cares about the jumps, I can recall him saying he toured an
entire season without ever leaving the ice, I also recall him competing at the
Legends Comp several years later and landing triple Lutz ( going on memory
here). I do remember a Beethoven program where he jumped in different
directions. Not too shabby for someone not known as a jumper. I remember
attending the Canadian Open where for his exhibition he threw a cd into the
audience and had them select the song he skated to. I think "I'm Your Man"
performed at Sun Valley is my favorite performance of his.
MaryJo
Sandra Loosemore
> As far as jumps go, well with Gary the first thing that comes to my
> mind is who cares about the jumps, I can recall him saying he toured
> an entire season without ever leaving the ice, I also recall him
> competing at the Legends Comp several years later and landing triple
> Lutz ( going on memory here). I do remember a Beethoven program
> where he jumped in different directions. Not too shabby for someone
> not known as a jumper.
Gary also used to do some jumps of his own invention where he landed
skating *forwards* instead of backwards. Not the kind of toe-pick
assisted forward landing that skaters do on split jumps and the like,
but a true one-foot landing on a running edge -- incredibly difficult
to do without falling flat on your face.
-Sandra
Hattie54
>performed at Sun Valley is my favorite performance of his.
>
>MaryJo
I loved that too !! We saw Gary, Tonya and Scottie there on Labor Day weekend
in 1991. My hubby isn't a skating fan but loved Gary and Gia's number on the
motorcycle .
Harriet
DG511
writes:
No, no, no, no, no. Wrong name for that side of the border. There must be
some mistake -- it's too much like what we'd call it here in the States.
Surely it's something like Customs and Revenue Agency Canada, and the current
form is due to a clerical error or something.
Really. ;-)
Obskating: Of course, this is headed in the direction of titles like "Skate
Canada: the Organization" and "Skate Canada: the Competition", etc.
Daria
Shillelagh
"DG511" <dg...@aol.compelling> wrote in message
> >"Shillelagh" she...@cat.howl
> >Close - but Revenue Canada has been combined with the Customs department
and
> >they have come up with another name - are you ready??? Ta da - here
it
> >is:
> >
> >Canada Customs and Revenue Agency
>
> No, no, no, no, no. Wrong name for that side of the border. There must
be
> some mistake -- it's too much like what we'd call it here in the States.
> Surely it's something like Customs and Revenue Agency Canada, and the
current
> form is due to a clerical error or something.
>
> Really. ;-)
>
> Obskating: Of course, this is headed in the direction of titles like
"Skate
> Canada: the Organization" and "Skate Canada: the Competition", etc.
>
> Daria
Yes, yes, yes, yes (LOL) I know it sounds like the wrong name, but hey -
I took it right off a tax slip... and here it is in French:
"Agence des douanes et du revenu du Canada"
Really . ;^D
How do you like them apples?? <grin>
Obskating: I'm going to Skate Canada (the competition) next November !!
I'll get to preview the Olympic programs of the skaters . Woo Hoo !
Shelagh
Jocelyn
>Canada: the Organization" and "Skate Canada: the Competition", etc.
Next we'll have Skate Canada: The Movie and Skate Canada: The Soft Drink...
Jocelyn
Trudi Marrapodi
> Fiona McQuarrie <mcqu...@sfu.ca> wrote:
>
> > I just read a whole book about the Freemen
> >movement, who embrace this philosophy - and I still think it's ridiculous.
> >Dirk, why are you assuming that the people making the statements you are
> >so upset about *aren't* familiar with this law? Could it just, maybe,
> >possibly be that they are and they don't agree with Beacom's
> >interpretation of it?
>
> Thank you Fiona, for actually finding out something about the issues:
> but I think you're a minority of one, in this group. I doubt that I
> could learn enough tax law between now and the next millenium to feel
> competent to pass judgment on individual cases I have not seen details
> of.
Look, it's like this: I don't think I have to learn a single thing about
tax law to understand the Gary Beacom philosophy about taxes. Seems to me
the Gary Beacom philosophy of taxes can pretty much be summed up like
this:
1. Gary Beacom has made a lot of money.
2. If he paid his taxes, he would lose a lot of that money to the government.
3. He doesn't want to lose the money.
4. Therefore, he found himself beginning to listen to a lot of other
people who, similarly not wanting to lose their money, had fabricated a
questionable "political philosophy" by which they could claim the right to
retain all the money they earned on the grounds that if they had to pay
any of it to the government, it would be horribly unfair and it would not
go toward things of which they approved.
Unfortunately for such people, that argument has never held legal water,
and I doubt it ever will.
I know what a libertarian is, and frankly, I am not one. If anything, I
think part of the problem with my own country today is that nobody wants
to pay a damn dime anymore for things they don't think will be of direct,
provable benefit to themselves--whether it's public schools ("I don't have
any kids, why do I care if the neighbor's kids are illiterate?") or
anything else. It's going to get to the point where we'll all have to
contract independently with a firefighting service just to get our houses
doused with water if they catch fire. After all, at some point or another
someone will claim that if your house catches fire, it's your own damn
fault, and taxpayers shouldn't have to pay for YOU to get your fire put
out. Never mind that a fire in your house could spread and burn down the
whole neighborhood.
The way I see it, taxes are a necessary evil. It is never fun to pay out
money to anyone else, but unless one is going to be a self-suffiecient
hermit in the woods, it is inevitable--and as a hermit is not how I choose
to live my life. No, I am not always thrilled with how my taxes are spent,
but at least if I don't like it, I have the option of trying to elect
people who will do a better job of it. Better that than having to pay to
get my own fires put out.
> Why I am "so upset", which I amn't, is, of course, at both the
> readiness of others to pass judgment on an issue that does not seem to
> be as clear as simply "guilty" or "innocent" - but rather involves
> minutely fine points of law (as, yes, all tax law does) subject to
> varying legitimate interpretations - and at the low moral tone -
> "serves the bastard right" - taken by most of the people commenting
> here.
Oh, rubbish. It has zippo to do with fine points of law. The law is
simple: Dodge paying your taxes, get thrown in the pokey. Anything else is
angels dancing on pinheads (and the pinheads are the people who try to get
out of paying taxes, IMO).
> As well as the consistent refusal to recognize that it is possible to
> a) legally disagree with the dictates of one's state, b) undertake a
> legal defense of that position, and c) be found in error, without
> thereby committing a major moral transgression.
>
> Cheers... ...dirk
I don't fail to recognize that possibility. I just don't think it applies
to this case.
I also feel I have gone way off topic, and I certainly don't want anyone
else to have any more of an excuse to violate the "Clinton-free zone"
again. So I will end, and say...well, Gary hurt only himself with this
stance, because at the time he was imprisoned, he was really getting his
jumps back, and it was quite impressive.
--
Trudi
Just Another Ventilator of Ice Skating Around the World
"I don't see myself as Ricky Martin." --Brian Orser
"Life is too damned short for me to read the dubious opinions of idiots" --Peg Lewis
To mail me, replace the double vowel at the end of the name with the correct single letter. Sorry to make it so hard, but I'm being spammed to death lately and I'm sick of it.
Trudi Marrapodi
Now as an Orser fan, I have "issues" with him (because he spent years
telling anyone who would listen that he should have beaten Orser at the
'84 Canadians, and that all his friends told him he should have won,
too)...in short, I think he's lacking in sportsmanship, and that
personally he has a "bad attitude" that gets him in a lot of trouble in
life. Which means that while his tax problems are a bit extreme for a
skater and somewhat surprising, they're not that much of a shock to anyone
who knows that Beacom has a reputation for saying and doing whatever he
thinks is right, no matter how anyone else feels about it.
Gary Beacom could do a lot of weird, difficult things no other skaters
did. Where he tended to fall short, for me at least, was at being able to
*do* the things other skaters did. I didn't like his skating posture--for
a man who could be so flexible and do so many impossible things with his
body, his basic skating and stroking posture was like something out of the
1930s. And he did always have problems with the jumps--until, ironically,
1996 or so, when he got Co-Planar skates and apparently had a lot of
success working on jumps with them. I went to Canadian Open that year and
he was landing triple lutzes. It was not long after that, though, that he
landed in prison, because he was too stubborn to save himself from that
fate. Maybe he can regain any ground he lost from all the time he spent
there, but I wouldn't bet on it.
Ron Ng
You mean his INABILITY to comply with the law!
P.S. - Did you read about Joeille's planned trip to DC? I wonder how she can
afford it now that Loren is dead! <g>
Ron Ng Knows!
Albert H. Dobyns
> and Sasha-Skate Canada: The Soft Drink.
>
> Trudi (just having some fun with Sasha, no harm intended)
Looks to me like you have recovered from the flu!
Al