Why did Reagan Administration grant tax-free religious status to Scientology?

[konradv]

No, I cannot explain it to you. Because your entire deranged perception is being shot to shit with your mindless hatred and bigotry.

Your first sentence seems correct, but the second reveals that you haven't bothered to read up on the subject. Bigotry is an irrational hatred. I've read enough to know that it's CoS that's irrational. What have you done to educate yourself?

 

[Inthemiddle]

No, I cannot explain it to you. Because your entire deranged perception is being shot to shit with your mindless hatred and bigotry.

Your first sentence seems correct, but the second reveals that you haven't bothered to read up on the subject. Bigotry is an irrational hatred. I've read enough to know that it's CoS that's irrational. What have you done to educate yourself?

Point to me one single religion that won't appear "irrational" to some non-subscribing observer?

 

[konradv]

No, I cannot explain it to you. Because your entire deranged perception is being shot to shit with your mindless hatred and bigotry.

Your first sentence seems correct, but the second reveals that you haven't bothered to read up on the subject. Bigotry is an irrational hatred. I've read enough to know that it's CoS that's irrational. What have you done to educate yourself?

Point to me one single religion that won't appear "irrational" to some non-subscribing observer?

You haven't been paying attention. It's a money making scam POSING as a religion. I don't care what they believe. I care what the do to their members. Please, read up before making anymore silly comments.

 

[Inthemiddle]

It's a money making scam POSING as a religion.

There's no need to bring Catholicism into this.

 

[Misty]

Reagan is dead just like you Andy Griffith.

 

[konradv]

It's a money making scam POSING as a religion.

There's no need to bring Catholicism into this.

Another douche bag comment. Easier than reading and learning something, I guess!

 

[konradv]

A little something to get the doubters started.

Operation Clambake - The Inner Secrets Of Scientology

Ex-Scientology Kids

Secrets of Scientology

Scientology: The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power

Paul Haggis vs. the Church of Scientology : The New Yorker

 

[Avatar4321]

The Constitution doesn't say "Congress shall make no law prohibiting the free exercise of religion, unless it's one that is unpopular and which the general population believes is a mind controlling cult built on fantasy"

You don't have to like scientology. Heck, you dont have to think it's a serious religion. But people consider it their religion. And the Constitution says government cant make any law prohibiting the free exercise of any religion and that includes tax laws.

Id rather people be free than to have the government try to determine what group is a real religion or not.

Try reading some of the web pages cited before making such an uninformed comment. For evil to triumph all it takes is for good people to do nothing.

I did. Im not impressed. Congress shall make no law means exactly that.

 

[konradv]

The Constitution doesn't say "Congress shall make no law prohibiting the free exercise of religion, unless it's one that is unpopular and which the general population believes is a mind controlling cult built on fantasy"

You don't have to like scientology. Heck, you dont have to think it's a serious religion. But people consider it their religion. And the Constitution says government cant make any law prohibiting the free exercise of any religion and that includes tax laws.

Id rather people be free than to have the government try to determine what group is a real religion or not.

Try reading some of the web pages cited before making such an uninformed comment. For evil to triumph all it takes is for good people to do nothing.

I did. Im not impressed. Congress shall make no law means exactly that.

Not impressed? Not evil enough for you? What does it take? Remember, it's NOT about their beliefs.

 

[Hum Dinger]

The Constitution doesn't say "Congress shall make no law prohibiting the free exercise of religion, unless it's one that is unpopular and which the general population believes is a mind controlling cult built on fantasy"

You don't have to like scientology. Heck, you dont have to think it's a serious religion. But people consider it their religion. And the Constitution says government cant make any law prohibiting the free exercise of any religion and that includes tax laws.

Id rather people be free than to have the government try to determine what group is a real religion or not.

Try reading some of the web pages cited before making such an uninformed comment. For evil to triumph all it takes is for good people to do nothing.

I did. Im not impressed. Congress shall make no law means exactly that.

Congress DID make a law respecting religious institutions. It's called the IRS taxcode. It's the standard by which organizations qualify as religions.

How about if there was no exemptions for religious institutions and instead religious organizations would have to qualify for tax exemption as charitable organizations?

That would be a good measure of whether they were actual valid religions or just money making scams, now wouldn't it?

 

[Cecilie1200]

Seems to me that the only reason this is called a religion is precisely because the Federal government gave it's blessing to be considered one, by granting tax-free status.

Why am I wrong?

Same reason you're ALWAYS wrong: because you're an ignorant mouthbreather.

Scientology is called a religion because it is one. It doesn't need the federal government's approval - or yours, however much you seem to believe every fucking thing on the planet requires your vote on it - to be what its practitioners believe. It only needs the federal government's approval to not pay taxes, and shocking as it may seem to shallow-minded twits like you, the definition of "religon" is NOT "doesn't pay federal taxes".

I realize that you are an idiot (and am also realizing that you are a Scientologist), so you can be excused for not understanding the question, which is:

Why was Scientology given tax-exempt status?

I realize you are a proto-idiot, and therefore cannot recognize answers when they are given to you fifteen times unless they are what you want to hear. Nevertheless, the answer is not going to be "because Ronald Reagan and the evil Republicans entered into a sinister back-room deal with the Scientologists" no matter HOW many times you stick your fingers in your ears and shout, "Lalala, WHY WHY WHY, lala!" The answer is still, and always, BECAUSE THEY MET THE LEGAL REQUIREMENTS.

And FYI, you can send me "You're so stupid" neg reps for refusing to do your research for you until your face turns blue, but my answer is STILL going to be "look it up for yourself, asswipe". You have no business commenting on the tax-exempt status of churches when you're too big a pissbrain to even find out how such a thing is acquired, and your little neg-rep tantrum just makes me laugh at you even harder.

The correct website is STILL IRS.gov, and you're still a lazy-ass, sniveling nancyboy.

Hey, here's an idea: why don't you make yourself look REALLY brilliant and ask me again why the Church of Scientology has tax-exempt status?

 

[Cecilie1200]

Apparently the government does. And by doing so, they violate the establishment clause by favoring some "religions" over others.

So the question I keep asking: what makes one religion worthy of government approval over another?

No, dimwit, they don't. The government gets to decide what meets their definition of a tax-exempt religious organization. I realize that leftist government-worshippers can't understand the difference between "existing" and "being recognized by the government", but there IS a difference.

Which is...what?

Still on the IRS's website, and your fucking research to do for yourself, that's what.

Only children and fools think that repeating the question will change the answer, so which one are you, fucknut?

 

[Cecilie1200]

If we are going to allow tax exempt status for some religions, then we must allow them for all of them and the guidelines must be pretty liberal. If they are not, it could be construed as favoritism towards one group over another which could lead to a ruling where all religions lose their tax exempt status.

Like all tax laws, tax-exemption is available to anyone who wishes to meet the requirements for it. This will probably amaze you, but many religious groups DON'T WANT government recognition, and don't feel the need for it. I realize that leftists, in their veneration of all things government, will never grasp that fact, but it's true.

There is no "favoritism" in the IRS's tax-exemption codes. They are accessible by anyone who wants to access them, they aren't all that particularly hard to meet (that's "not hard" by tax regulation standards, of course), and they are applied in exactly the same way to everyone who applies for them.

Which is...what?


You're not very good at this, are you?

Actually, I'm very good at telling ignorant, tantruming children to do their own homework repeatedly, which is why you've gotten the same answer every time: LOOK IT UP FOR YOURSELF, TWATBOY.

S'matter, punkin? Trying to kill your own thread so you can forget how stupid you've made yourself look?

 

[Cecilie1200]

OK - again: what constitutes a religion?

What are the criteria in which to acquire tax-free status?

You're connected to the fucking Internet, twit. Look it up and stop expecting the rest of us to fill in the Asia-sized holes in your knowledge every time you step on your johnson.

You made the assertion, you dumb shit.

Back it up, or continue to be laughed at.

No, dipshit. YOU made the assertion that there was something incorrect about their tax-exempt status. All the "back-up" I need is the fact that they, in fact, have that status. YOU are the one who needs to prove there's something wrong with that, and you can't do it, because you don't even know how that status is achieved.

Yeah, I'm really tortured over some halfwit troll sitting at his computer, cackling insanely at nothing at all. Anyone who's opinion is worth a bucket of warm spit is laughing at YOU, Sparkles, and your little "I don't know the applicable tax laws, but I'm ranting about them anyway" schtick.

One more time: I already know how tax-exempt status is acquired. You WANT to know. I'm not your Mommy or your tutor, so go look it the fuck up for yourself, lazy asswipe twit.

 

[Cecilie1200]

OK, Braniac: what are the legal requirements to be a tax-exempt religious organization?


I predict that this will be the last that we see of Cecilie in this thread.

I'm not your research assistant, ass wipe. Go look it up for yourself. IRS.gov, in case you're too stupid to figure out where to find it.

I predict this will either be the last we see of Synthaholic on this thread, or the last time he mentions this question.

You said:

Because they met the legal requirements to be a tax-exempt religious organization
​

What are those requirements, dumb shit?

Or are you just another wingnut who talks out of your ass?

You said, "What are those requirements?" I said, "Go look them up for yourself, moron. I'm not your fucking research assistant."

Or are you just another wingnut who talks out of your ass?

 

[Cecilie1200]

Apparently, you are so fucking stupid, you don't even see the contradiction in the two bolded statements.

Apparently YOU are so fucking stupid, you don't even see that the only "contradiction" exists in your head. Your inability to understand something doesn't make it incorrect.

Since I'm feeling charitable, I will explain it for you one more time: IRS tax-exemption does NOT confer "legitimacy" on a religion, any more than a marriage license confers it on a relationship. Only liberals think government sanction equals legitimacy, because only liberals worship the fucking government and think the world revolves around it.

Tax-exemption confers one thing, and only one thing, on a religious organization: tax exemption. And the IRS determines one thing and one thing only: whether or not an organization which chooses to apply for tax-exemption meets the requirements to receive it. Should you ever pull your head out of your ass long enough to actually FIND those requirements and read them, rather than sitting around on your dead ass, whining for someone else to tell you what they are, you will see that NONE of those requirements involve the IRS judging the actual beliefs of the organization for their validity. Also, the IRS does not choose who will or will not apply for tax-exempt status. Any group may apply which wishes to do so.

You are dumber than a fucking rock!

A marriage license doesn't confer legitimacy on a relationship?

No, it doesn't. It confers legal recognition on it. Perhaps YOU wouldn't consider your relationship to be legitimate - assuming you could ever find a woman so pathetic as to enter into one with you - without the government, but I don't worship the government the way you do. My marriage is my marriage whether the government chooses to sanction it or not.

Likewise, I can assure you that most people do not require government recognition of their beliefs as an organized, non-profit church to consider those beliefs every bit as valid and legitimate as anyone else's.

That's always the problem with you leftists: nothing exists for you unless it comes through Momma Government.

 

[Cecilie1200]

i would think a "religion" has to have a God or Gods to worship....who do these guys worship.....L.Ron Hubbard?....hey just askin....

So Buddhism isn't a religion, and shouldn't have tax-exempt status?

to me no.....it seems more like a philosophy.....my opinion is a "religion" has to have something you worship,like a god or gods.....not just following some guys way of life.....if you dont pray to someone,to me,its no religion......no tax-exempt status....

You are aware that the world around you is not defined by "your opinion" or "what it is to me", right?

Religion does not require a deity just because you, in your infinite wisdom, decided that it did, and tax-exempt status doesn't require a deity, either, whether you personally think it should or not.

Please feel free to avail yourself of the same website I keep recommending to Synthaholic, IRS.gov, to bone up on what the government came up with for tax-exempt requirements in the absence of your mandate on the subject, and you might also pay a visit to one of the many free online dictionaries to clarify the whole "definition of religion" thing.

 

[Cecilie1200]

What are those requirements, dumb shit?

An organization must be organized and operated exclusively for exempt purposes set forth in section 501(c)(3), and none of its earnings may inure to any private shareholder or individual. In addition, it may not be an action organization, i.e., it may not attempt to influence legislation as a substantial part of its activities and it may not participate in any campaign activity for or against political candidates.

Well, that answers the question of who did Synthaholic's homework in school, although it does beg the question of why he didn't hire someone intelligent.

By the way, Muddle, you have a little smutch of brown on your nose.

 

[Avatar4321]

Try reading some of the web pages cited before making such an uninformed comment. For evil to triumph all it takes is for good people to do nothing.

I did. Im not impressed. Congress shall make no law means exactly that.

Not impressed? Not evil enough for you? What does it take? Remember, it's NOT about their beliefs.

Freedom allows people to do both good and evil. The Government should never have the authority to determine what is a religion and what is not. If they do that, the First Amendment is meaningless.

 

[Cecilie1200]

It was reported at the time that the meeting between administration officials and Scientology officials lasted as little as 10 minutes.

Why would Reagan grant tax-free status to a bunch of kooks?

No, but he fired all the air traffic controllers who went on strike. 1981! Union busting at it's best.

it may have seemed that way Willow.....but those guys signed a paper just like i did.....if you strike,you just may lose your job....well they struck and they lost their jobs.......they knew the probable consequences.....

If I remember correctly, air traffic controllers are government employees. Government employees are barred by law from going on strike. I know way back when I worked for the Post Office, the APWU was quite clear on that being absolutely out of the question in any contract negotiation.