I was just working on my business and I realized, I am subject to involuntary servitude which — according to the language of the 13th Amendment — is unconstitutional (i.e. illegal!). This is why I constantly stress the definition of words: because words have defined meanings, and knowing what they mean could help us avoid so much of the mess we have made of our society.
So, I was trying to decide how I was going to run my business in the face of the new VAT tax laws which now require me — a non-citizen — to collect the VAT taxes for every member of the EU. Then I thought, the U.S. and State governments do the same thing — and all of it is against my will. Which then caused me to wonder about the definition of ‘involuntary servitude.’ According to the legal dictionary I found when I searched for the definition, I found this:
Involuntary Servitude
Slavery; the condition of an individual who works for another individual against his or her will as a result of force, coercion, or imprisonment, regardless of whether the individual is paid for the labor.
Wait! What?! I thought we eliminated slavery in the U.S.! Isn’t that what the 13th Amendment did? Well, let’s check to see:
Thirteenth Amendment
Section 1
Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.
Yep! Sure enough; involuntary servitude is just as illegal as slavery — unless, of coarse, you are a slave to the government. In that case, I guess it’s OK. I mean, how else will they collect taxes and operate a welfare system where the producers are forced to work for the debts of the consumers?
Do you see how much clearer things get when you just pay attention to the meaning of the words we use? 🙂
THE ROAD TO CONCORD 