Your PC, supportive IRS at work

Many of us view the IRS with a certain amount of suspicion. Being fair-minded people, we know that all societies need some mechanism to collect revenue to pay for basic government services (with the fault lying with Congress if those revenue demands are excessive). We also know that our family and friends may work for it, and that they do so in an honorable capacity.

Nevertheless, there’s no getting past the fact that the IRS is a huge government bureaucracy that can, and will, destroy you if you cross it. It’s also unnerving that the current Congress is using the IRS, not just as a collection agency, but as a cudgel to force citizens to comply with coercive government policies that violate fundamental constitutional rights.

Given the IRS’s vast power, which Congress has recently put to a nefarious use, will it comfort you at all to know that the IRS has a touchie-feelie side? How else to explain this email, which circulated to large numbers of IRS employees, before ultimately making its way to my inbox.

You can draw your own conclusions about what’s happening within the IRS. I’ll just say that I view with suspicion any email that begins with a bathetic quotation from the execrable Jimmy Carter:

Sent: Friday, November 19, 2010 9:38 AM
To: ******
Subject: Creating a beautiful mosaic

We have become not a melting pot but a beautiful mosaic. Different people, different beliefs, different yearnings, different hopes, different dreams. — Jimmy Carter

I am constantly amazed by the contribution so many of you make to the IRS, your co-workers, and your communities through your memberships in any of more than a dozen IRS employee groups.

From the oldest organization, the Association for the Improvement of Minorities in the IRS, founded in 1969, to the newest group formed just this year, the Interactive Spiritual Partners for Internal Revenue Employees — these clubs work to fulfill significant missions. They typically serve their members and communities by supporting equal opportunities for all, while alerting leaders to trends and new issues. Most employee organizations meet regularly, raise funds to help fulfill their organization’s mission and assist within the community. Many groups offer scholarships and educate their members through local and national conferences, e-mail and social media.

***** and I thank all of you who improve your communities and help make the IRS the best place to work. You not only help others, you also learn new skills and meet people who can support you in your career. ***** and I know the value of employee groups because we often attend the national conferences and see the “magic” happen firsthand.

I encourage you to visit the Employee Organizations Web page. Ask questions, attend a meeting and join one — or more — groups. Be assured you can join any of them. Your political, ethnic or religious background is unimportant to these groups as long as you support their shared mission — to make the IRS employee “mosaic” even more beautiful to behold.

Cross-posted at Bookworm Room

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