Should the ACLU lose its tax exempt status?

ballz2wallz · 10-12-2006, 09:42 AM

YouTube Video

Imagine if a church was using its status to push certain political agendas or campaigns. Oh the horror that would follow!

Here is a case built up of why the ACLU should not have tax exempt status.

Stop The ACLU » Blog Archive » ACLU Should Lose Its Tax Exempt Status

Kytro · 10-12-2006, 09:50 AM

I'm not wholly sure of the condition for being tax exempt, nor the remidies usally imposed for breaching those conditions.

The ad seems to be politically motivated, even if they have a geniune reason

WickedLou9 · 10-12-2006, 09:53 AM

Don't most non-profit groups get tax exempt status?

Phantom · 10-12-2006, 09:57 AM

Originally Posted by WickedLou9

Don't most non-profit groups get tax exempt status?

as long as they are not political. I'm not sure where the line is drawn, but specific support for candidates or parties is definately over the line.

Scrum · 10-12-2006, 10:25 AM

Originally Posted by ballz2wallz

Imagine if a church was using its status to push certain political agendas or campaigns. Oh the horror that would follow!

WickedLou9 · 10-12-2006, 10:36 AM

Originally Posted by ballz2wallz

YouTube Video

Imagine if a church was using its status to push certain political agendas or campaigns. Oh the horror that would follow!

Here is a case built up of why the ACLU should not have tax exempt status.

Stop The ACLU » Blog Archive » ACLU Should Lose Its Tax Exempt Status

They have actually.

ballz2wallz · 10-12-2006, 12:00 PM

Originally Posted by WickedLou9

They have actually.

I know

imind · 10-12-2006, 12:21 PM

what is this change he alludes to that is cleaving the alcu? what drastic changes do they want to make?

yeah, they probably went too far with this ad. fine them.

bottom line, though, is that

is a hack. that attempt to suggest that they were going back to their 'original tenets' of communism was a cheap shot, nothing more.

JaJae · 10-12-2006, 12:33 PM

Originally Posted by imind

what is this change he alludes to that is cleaving the alcu? what drastic changes do they want to make?

yeah, they probably went too far with this ad. fine them.

bottom line, though, is that is a hack. that attempt to suggest that they were going back to their 'original tenets' of communism was a cheap shot, nothing more.

How so? The vast majority of their decisions regarding social issues is very similar to communist roots.

SpicyMcVoodoo · 10-12-2006, 01:52 PM

This whole discussion is stupid until someone clarifies what exactly you can and can't do while being tax exempt.

10-12-2006, 01:53 PM

Originally Posted by JaJae

How so? The vast majority of their decisions regarding social issues is very similar to communist roots.

The ACLU was originally established to push a communist agenda in the US

SpicyMcVoodoo · 10-12-2006, 01:54 PM

Originally Posted by 6SpeedTA95

The ACLU was originally established to push a communist agenda in the US

So was the title supposed to be ironic? Communists weren't exactly protective of civil liberties.

ballz2wallz · 10-12-2006, 01:54 PM

Originally Posted by SpicyMcVoodoo

This whole discussion is stupid until someone clarifies what exactly you can and can't do while being tax exempt.

I think it's quite clear; you can't campaign or push a particular individual, platform, or agenda in the political realm.

SpicyMcVoodoo · 10-12-2006, 01:56 PM

Originally Posted by ballz2wallz

I think it's quite clear; you can't campaign or push a particular individual, platform, or agenda in the political realm.

link? if it were that clear, we wouldn't be having this discussion.

ballz2wallz · 10-12-2006, 01:59 PM

Originally Posted by SpicyMcVoodoo

link? if it were that clear, we wouldn't be having this discussion.

I think the discussion is clear; churches are often taken off their tax-exempt status for pushing a particular individual in a political race. But the ACLU, under the same rules, isn't being taken off their tax-exempt status for committing the same 'crime'. Why not?

Personally, I find it unbelievable that some churches who have particular candidates speak at their church aren't taken off tax-exempt status either.

SpicyMcVoodoo · 10-12-2006, 02:02 PM

Originally Posted by ballz2wallz

I think the discussion is clear; churches are often taken off their tax-exempt status for pushing a particular individual in a political race. But the ACLU, under the same rules, isn't being taken off their tax-exempt status for committing the same 'crime'. Why not?

Personally, I find it unbelievable that some churches who have particular candidates speak at their church aren't taken off tax-exempt status either.

It's not clear. Law is never clear. People argue about semantics and minutia of statutory language for years trying to figure out what it means. Since they haven't been stripped of tax exempt status yet, I'm forced to conclude that whatever they're doing is at least arguably within the law. What the argument is, I have no idea, because no one has posted the exact language of the law.

There are enough people that hate the ACLU to strip them of their status if what they were doing was so clearly wrong.

10-12-2006, 02:04 PM

Originally Posted by ballz2wallz

I think the discussion is clear; churches are often taken off their tax-exempt status for pushing a particular individual in a political race. But the ACLU, under the same rules, isn't being taken off their tax-exempt status for committing the same 'crime'. Why not?

Personally, I find it unbelievable that some churches who have particular candidates speak at their church aren't taken off tax-exempt status either.

The ACLU isn't being taken off because most people aren't aware of it.

ballz2wallz · 10-12-2006, 02:08 PM

Originally Posted by SpicyMcVoodoo

It's not clear. Law is never clear. People argue about semantics and minutia of statutory language for years trying to figure out what it means. Since they haven't been stripped of tax exempt status yet, I'm forced to conclude that whatever they're doing is at least arguably within the law. What the argument is, I have no idea, because no one has posted the exact language of the law.

There are enough people that hate the ACLU to strip them of their status if what they were doing was so clearly wrong.

Organizations with this classification are prohibited from conducting political campaign activities to influence elections to public office.

501(c) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Seems pretty clear to me

Scrum · 10-12-2006, 02:57 PM

Originally Posted by JaJae

How so? The vast majority of their decisions regarding social issues is very similar to communist roots.

No they aren't. unless you are saying that 99% of your civil liberties are communist.

SpicyMcVoodoo · 10-12-2006, 04:48 PM

Originally Posted by JaJae

How so? The vast majority of their decisions regarding social issues is very similar to communist roots.

The only thing the ACLU sort of has in common with communists was their desire for the government to be secular, but even then, they weren't the same as the communists. The communists made religion illegal and had officially atheistic states. The ACLU doesn't want an officially atheist state or to make religion illegal. The just want the government to stay out of religion one way or another and let people believe whatever the want.

Aside from that, they're the complete opposite of communists with their advocacy for individual rights and liberties, which the communists didn't buy at all. You had no rights. It was all about the good of the state and what the communist party said, period.