The most honorable day of the year: Tax day

To the United States of America, I want to say how grateful I am to be living in a country that actually taxes me. Every year, the day I click the send button of my tax returns is the most honorable day of the year for me as a United States citizen.

We all have our opinion about taxes, appropriate rates or merits and demerits of specific tax policy. As someone who studied federal tax laws in my undergraduate years, I realize these are complex laws for the ordinary citizenry to comprehend. That is why only the will of the Congress alone can determine what is just and fair amount for us to pay. But pay, we must all.

Taxes provide revenue for federal, local and state governments to fund essential services such as a highway system, defense, police, a justice system that benefit all the citizens, who could not provide such services very effectively and efficiently for themselves. Taxes also fund programs and services that benefit only certain citizens, such as health, welfare, and social services, job training, public schools and public libraries and parks.

Paying your fair share of taxes is not only the right thing to do but an honorable act as well. I left Nepal in 1994 in pursuit of higher education. While there, I attended a world class unique public school supported by the taxpayer. While in the U.S., I was given a merit based full tuition scholarship through trustee scholarship at Ohio Wesleyan University, where other honorable taxpayers had donated money to the college.

It is often said among our immigrant circle that those of us whether we land in U.S. as documented or undocumented immigrants that we become a millionaire the instant we put our feet on the ground. The awe inspiring transportation infrastructure, the military might that guarantees our freedom, the emergency hospital visits that guarantees our medical treatments, the public education system and the list goes on, all courtesy of honorable taxpayers such as yourself.

So, thank you, America, and thank you American taxpayers for all that you have done and continue to do for this great nation. We can have heated debates among politicians, academic and ordinary citizens about the subject of taxes but the fact that paying taxes in an honorable act should not be debatable. So this Monday when you get done filing your taxes and hitting that send button, let’s celebrate our role as honorable tax paying citizens. You can swing by my house if you like, drinks on me.

Ron Sitoula, Indian Head The writer is the vice mayor of the Town of Indian Head.