Would I have voted for the income tax amendment in 1912, based on the arguments in “Philip Dru”? Philip Dru was a book written by a man named Edward M. House. According to Wikipedia, “Edward Mandell House was an American diplomat, and an adviser to President Woodrow Wilson. He was known as Colonel House, although his title was honorary and he had performed no military service.” According to Goodreads, “The story is about a man, Philip Dru, who leads a revolt against the United States government because it had become too corrupt. After the revolution, he scraps the Constitution and makes himself “Administrator.” He then changes every concept of national and state governments to reflect his view of governance.” Here is an extremely quick summary of the book. Philip Dru joined the military and he was a military genius, but while in the desert he went blind. He won a military competition against other military people, while he was still in his twenties. He was asked to rejoin the military, but refused and went into politics. In the end, he leads a revolt against the government, because it becomes too corrupt. 

What was the income tax of 1912? It was the sixteenth amendment of the constitution and was ratified on February 3, 1913. It gave the congress authority to issue an income tax, but not based on the population. 

Would I have voted for the income tax amendment in 1912, based on the arguments in “Philip Dru”? Before this book I would have never voted for any tax laws, but after this book I still wouldn’t vote for any tax laws. The message of this book is progressivism. According to Wikipedia, “Progressivism is a political philosophy and movement that seeks to advance the human condition through social reform – primarily based on purported advancements in social organization, science, and technology.” There are also many things in this book that are implausible that made me not want to vote for income tax. A guy in his twenties has better military skills than all the commanders and officers. In one week, he raises enough funds for his massive army in just one week. His army of 500,000 untrained men beats an army of 600,000 trained men. He goes on to rule the world as a dictator. None of this could have ever happened.