Graph of World Military Expenditures, by Country

Some bits and pieces from here and there:

• Tax Justice Network posts a summary of the 14^th century peasant’s revolt in England, showing the tax-revolt at the base of the insurrection.
• A number of reports have said that the IRS is due to get a bigger than usual boost to its budget this time around. Much of this increase is said to be aimed to boost the agency’s enforcement activities. The agency is having a hard time keeping up with collections, even failing to pursue people who owe millions in back taxes.
• Forbes reports that the IRS is paying closer attention to “hobby losses” — that is, business losses that tax filers claim on their tax returns for activities that the agency believes are not related to a legitimate business pursued for profit, but a hobby pursued for amusement. The agency has released a new manual for use by its agents to help them determine when a business is really a hobby or vice-versa. If your business is a borderline case, you can use this manual to help you in making business decisions (and in deciding what sorts of documentation you need to maintain) that will help you substantiate its business-status in the event that you are audited.
• The federal government is also toying with the idea of trying to require states to deny business licenses to people who are behind on paying their federal taxes.
• This graph of world military expenditures, broken out per country, is eye-opening and deserves wider circulation.
• If you enjoyed the story of John Patric, you may also enjoy reading about his later incarnation as Hugo N. Frye.

I thought I’d just about seen it all, but here’s a variety of tax resistance that’s new to me:

Angry bingo tax protestors are aiming to put a hex on Chancellor Alastair Darling.

The ladies, members of Mecca Bingo, Brookdale Place, have made voodoo dolls in protest against the Government’s decision to raise tax on their favourite game.

The levy on bingo has increased from 15% to 22%, which the outraged gamers claim could be enough to force bingo halls to close down.

Bingo fan Gemma Moran, 35, who was one of many who knitted a voodoo doll bearing a picture of the chancellor’s head, said: “Alistair Darling is stabbing in the back the very people who helped to put him and the Labour party in power. Now we want him to know how it feels.

“If he doesn’t keep bingo tax at 15% then we’re worried that clubs like ours could close.

“We come to bingo because we can meet our friends and have fun in a safe environment. If our club closed where else is there for us to go?”