Pushed Too Far

The government is pushing people into killing. Many of us read about the shooting in Wakefield, Massachusetts by Michael McDermott, a 42-year-old software tester who was pushed too far by the IRS. He shot and killed seven people at his workplace on December 26, 2000. McDermott seemed to have his problems and the IRS didn’t know who they were pushing until it was too late.

I think the IRS should work with the people more. Taking more than half of someone’s paycheck is too much. They could head off this type of retaliation by reviewing each individual’s financial position before they impose a levy.

Another tragic example of how the government pushes people over the edge was the Oklahoma City bombing of the FBI headquarters that killed 168 people on April 19, 1995. Timothy McVeigh was pushed too far after hearing what had happened to the people at the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas. The FBI’s killing of innocent men, women, and children was just too much for Timothy to deal with.

For some people, the use of violence is the only way they know how to express their anger over the government’s actions. As the IRS put levies on 219,778 other delinquent taxpayers this year, I could see where more of this could happen. We may be headed for another year of bloodshed.