Edward Abbey: Taxation How Sheep Shorn
on Sunday, March 27, 2016Edward Abbey Money Quote saying suggesting that there are also wolves among the citizens taxed. Edward Abbey said:
“Taxation: how the sheep are shorn” — Edward Abbey
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In this quote, Edward Abbey is drawing a comparison between taxation and sheep being shorn or having their wool cut off. When he states that taxation is “how the sheep are shorn”, Abbey is suggesting that many people view the act of paying taxes as the government fleecing money from citizens, much like farmers shear wool off sheep.
His metaphor portrays taxpayers as feeling like they are being stripped of their earnings for the benefit of others. The quote conveys Abbey’s perspective that some resent taxation as an involuntary loss of wealth to the governing body, just as sheep have no choice in losing their wool each shearing season.
Overall, he characterizes paying taxes as being financially shorn or having money taken without consent.