Civilized Quote by Mark Skousen
“Taxation is the price we pay for failing to build a civilized society. The higher the tax level, the greater the failure. A centrally planned totalitarian state represents a complete defeat for the civilized world, while a totally voluntary society represents its ultimate success.”
About This Quote
Source Book: The Making of a Free Society, Mark Skousen, 1995
Taxation reflects a society’s inability to provide public goods without coercion; higher taxes signal greater systemic failure, while voluntary cooperation is ideal.
In simple terms: Taxes show societal failure; voluntaryism is ideal.
Key Takeaway
Promote voluntary cooperation and limit coercive taxation.
Themes
taxation
government
freedom
voluntaryism
societal structure
Mood
critical
thoughtful
analytical
Type
philosophical
political
economic
When to use this quote
- policy debate
- economic reform
- community building
- political activism
Key Concepts
public goods
coercion
central planning
libertarianism
Questions to Reflect On
- What essential services could be funded without taxation?
- How can voluntary systems replace government functions?
A Different Perspective
High taxes may fund essential services, making the critique overly simplistic.
![“That country [Carthage] was rapidly sinking into the state of barbarism from whence it had been raised by the Phoenician colonies and Roman laws; and every step of intestine discord was marked by some deplorable victory of savage man over civilized society.” quote by Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/70c/edward-gibbon-710_barbarism_that-country-carthage-was-rapidly-sinkin_393.jpg)
