(SNN) - Every Government, no matter what its size, has to earn taxes in order to earn revenue. It doesn’t matter which party is in charge, Peter and Paul still need to be robbed and rewarded on a regular basis, whether the money goes to Welfare-receiving wastrels, or megalomaniac corporate executives. Is anyone, really surprised, therefore, about US admissions that the Internal Revenue Service took ‘long, hard looks’ at the Tea Party last year? Any pressure group that promises a radically slimmed down Government, and less taxation is going to set off alarm bells with anyone whose job it is to raise revenue for the Government.

While there is some concern about a partisan ‘conspiracy’, and Police State tactics, in the end, curiosity probably wins the day:

“So, this pressure group belongs to a non-profit, whose leaders used to work for the four richest men in the Country. These charities have given a gazillion dollars in the last two years to an extreme far-right political movement that demands the complete shut-down of the Government, and the franchising out of all Welfare Services for the richest generation that has ever existed just as they retire. They propose that these be run by HMO’s and the Insurance industry.”

“They have just finished a week-long ‘Information Session’ in the Virgin Islands that featured private Lear Jet collections from their home airports, golf caddied by Tiger Woods, and a speech by Clint Eastwood and a Pottery Barn bench. Can we just ask….where does the flow of money lead to – apart from a tax haven on some Pacific Atoll?”

It seems perfectly simple to me. Of course, this will be thrown back at the President as if the American people are stupid enough to believe that this gentle, compassionate, and intelligent man is responsible for every evil on earth, simply because he’s the wrong colour. Oh, wait – some of them do.

Once again, up here, where the weather and the political climate is a lot cooler a similar story broke. This week’s announcement that there were too many ultra-rich Canucks that have shipped their savings to Switzerland (I mean, if you need a French accent to look after your money safely, give it to a Quebecois bank. At least it will be given directly to those that personally ensure the smooth running of government and the continuous upgrading of facilities – the Hells Angels.), and they went public as only the Canadian Government could: Threats of police action? Midnight visits from CSIS? No, it was more like this:

“Now, we know some of you have way more money to tax on than you have told us, so we are going to turn the lights out, and we want you to re-write your returns. No questions asked.”

Does anyone wonder why we won’t give Sun News a spot on the dial that people don’t need a coat hanger to find?

Steve James is an Actor, Stand up, and Comedy writer in Vancouver BC. The only thing he has offshore are his parents.