RE: Why doesn't the United States follow it's own rules when it comes to the 1st amendmen
December 31, 2015 at 2:17 pm
(December 29, 2015 at 4:43 am)BrianSoddingBoru4 Wrote:(December 17, 2015 at 9:47 pm)Minimalist Wrote: It's really very simple. In exchange for tax exempt status they give up their right to lobby congress or endorse candidates. If they wish to engage in those activities all they have to do is give up their tax exemption.
(You'll see them cut their own nuts off with a rusty saw before that happens, man.)
Would you extend that stricture to non-religious charities? I'm not sure how it works in the US, but here many charities (and some other non-profits) are exempt from VAT, property, and income taxes, provided the income is used for charitable purposes.
In other words, would you require a group that provides help to, say, homeless war vets with PTSD give up either their lobbying or their tax exemptions, or is it only religious groups you feel should have this option required of them?
Boru
I ran a dog rescue for 3 years and we could not and did not lobby or endorse candidates as an organization, on our web site or in any publications. Individual members were free to do what they liked but on the rare occasion that someone posted something political on either our internal email system or our Facebook page it was immediately removed. In the case of email the person got a cordial ( at first ) reminder that we were not a political organization.
It just is not that hard to comply with the laws. For some reason....most likely the fact that they are fucking arrogant pricks... churches have a hard time dealing with it.
