Aussie Tax Office Wants Phone Tapping, Data Retention 46
schliz writes "The Australian Taxation Office has called for phone-tapping powers while backing a controversial proposal to force telcos to store web traffic and subscriber data for up to two years. It said such data may be crucial to investigations, with the Commissioner of Taxation previously explaining that the connection between criminals and their finances made them 'especially vulnerable to revenue collection agencies, because of the ability to identify the discrepancy between their wealthy lifestyle and modest tax declarations.' The Tax Office's statements come after this week's passage of new legislation that will allow law enforcement agencies to force internet service providers to store data on subscribers while an official warrant is sought."
The power to tax includes (Score:5, Insightful)
the power to destroy [google.com]
Each governmental agency thinks it's an entity unto itself. Everything depends on this one agency. Every right and freedom must be subjugated to meeting the agency's goal.
Whether it's taxation, "homeland" security, child protection, consumer protection, cops, military, unions or any number of other things, everybody wants their agency to figure first in citizen's lives.
It's time for people to stand up for the principle that government may only exercise those powers expressly granted to it. All other powers are reserved to the people.
Phone-Tapping the Tax Office? (Score:2, Insightful)
Not having RTFA, or even RTFS, is he saying that we should be phone-tapping the Australian Tax Office and enforcing Data Retention on everything their employees and managers do? After all, "Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?"
If not, maybe it should! The phrase "You first" applies in droves.
Re:The power to tax includes (Score:4, Insightful)
Not everybody's Constitution (or equivalent) says the same thing.
That's not actually true everywhere. And, for practical purposes, it's not true anywhere any more.