link to original reddit post by /u/clovergirl102187
Its hard to get kids to pay attention, right? Especially about boring stuff like taxes.
I dunno about y'alls kids, but mine especially tune me out when I start droning on about the unfairness of the tax system and the government taking my money from my pay. I could be loud and animated about it, but they just look at me like I'm insane. They're sorta right, but thats beside the point.
I have invented a wonderful tool to teach children the unfairness of taxes.
I coin it as the mom tax. You can adapt the title to whatever you want.
Every time they ask for something, like an order of fries from McDons, they already try to beat me to the bag. They know whats coming. The mom tax.
If I get them a drink? They try to slap me away.
I take a couple fries and shout "MOM TAX!" almost every time. Take a sip of their water or pop, and listen to the whining of "mooooom, thats not fair!"
To which I reply "I know its not fair. Taxes never are."
It opens the conversation. "So, if this isn't fair, how would you feel if when you work for money, the government says that you have to pay them some of it? And that if you don't pay you'll be punished? I don't punish you when you don't pay the mom tax, sometimes you get out of it all together. However, there is no getting around government tax."
Sure, my youngest is only 8 and isn't quite as understanding of the concept of taxes yet, but she knows its unfair. Where as my oldest totally gets it. Says taxes are bull. And then I let her explain her thought process and form her ideas, we discuss.
Teaching your children can be fun. And tasty. Teaching them our views though, I feel is the most important. They always say change comes with the next generation, right?