I agree that there are many ways in which most of us are "enslaved" in some way. I find it a stretch to say that paying taxes in the United Sates is what enslaves us however. When taxes go to paving roads, putting in stop signs, public education, the arts, healthcare, etc. it reflects a way in which we can all help each other out as a society and see the way we are all interconnected.

I also see that there are many things our tax dollars go towards that I am not a fan of (to say the least) and it is frustrating to know that a portion of my income goes to funding bombers and bailing out shady corporate execs. I still wouldn't say that the IRS has me enslaved.

I will say that many people are enslaved to limited thought processes which are instigated or amplified by the media produced by big corporations which rarely have our best interests in mind. For example, many women feel ugly compared to the images paraded across TV and computer screens, magazines, ads, billboards.. practically everywhere you look there is a woman who represents the standard to which we all compare ourselves. We equate happiness with beauty and beauty with looks and go to extreme lengths—plastic surgery, eating disorders, exorbitant spending on products—to attain this illusion. We choose this for ourselves, but the choice is made after much psychological manipulation.

I guess that is all to say that if we are to really discuss slavery, we have to go really deep, to invisible realms of manipulation and control. The US gov't outlawed slavery in 1863 and at that point, it just went into hiding.

Ah! I would also recommend watching 13th a film about the industrial prison complex. Another example of modern day slavery. Very interesting and important subject matter that you bring up. Thank you for challenging us all to think about it.

A