The recent Supreme Court decision allowing religious people (and very specifically, Evangelical and Catholic religious people) to selectively comply with federal law got me thinking about what would happen if other religious groups start to demand the same consideration:
Dear IRS,
I am a lifelong member of a religious order that counts pacifism among the tenets of our faith. This not because we do not love our country, but because we feel the Bible clearly shows (based on our interpretation) that human life belongs to God and taking a human life, for any reason, is an abomination. Even supporting the mechanism to take a life indirectly is considered a sin. So strongly do we hold this belief that we will not serve on juries where the death penalty is a possibility—again, not because we don’t feel some people are worthy of death, but because we feel that decision belongs to God and we will have sinned if we take it upon ourselves.
We are also taught that it is important to obey the laws of whatever land we live in. This means that if we go against those laws, for instance refusing military service during a draft, we must willingly subject ourselves to the legal punishment proscribed by law.
It was with some relief, then, that I heard about the Hobby Lobby decision by the Supreme Court which makes it clear that laws can be subjectively applied to suit religious beliefs. Based on my clearly held religious convictions, I demand to be reimbursed for any portion of my tax payments for the past 36 years that have gone to support the US military in missions that have resulted in loss of life. This violation of my beliefs has created an undue burden for my conscience, which can finally be rectified thanks to the Supreme Court’s decision that federal laws do not apply to people of faith.
If possible, can you provide line item data to indicate how many lives were lost and how they were lost? Just like Hobby Lobby, I demand the right to pick and choose what forms of state-sponsored murder I will support. Since I don’t object to ALL military loss of life—just loss of life from active military actions in wars/skirmishes I happen to disagree with--I will still cover friendly fire incidents and unfortunate accidents in military actions I have pre-approved (based on standards of my own devising) through my tax contributions. For now.
Also, please inform my employer to lower my FICA withholding based on the above, by order of the Supreme Court.
I would appreciate your attention to this matter immediately, as I am very busy combing through federal laws to see what else I may be exempt from.
Thank you