Taxation is not theft. Unless some government decided to write their laws in a particular way that would make taxation theft.
As a holding member of private property protected by the government, I have consented to the rules and laws of the government that protects that property. One of those rules may be taxation. Since the basis of my property is derived from the government itself, the notion that the government is stealing anything from me is inconsistent since they granted me the power to own that property in the first place and have also given me some legal protection of that property from other individuals.
But lets revisit the idea of force. Many argue that taxation is theft because the government is forcibly removing your property from you. But the only reason it is your property is because you have consented to a government to protect that property from others who may want it. This agreement means you have chosen to follow the rules, even if it means losing some property. There is no theft, but a consensual agreement. If you want to, you can leave the country and try to create an independent entity. Unfortunately, once you leave the contract, nobody will protect you and other nations are free to do with you as they please. Does this appear a little unfair? Sure. But you can't have your cake and eat it too. You can have your property protected at a cost or you can have your property unprotected at the cost that anyone can use force to steal that property away from you.
If you have declared independence from the government that you used to be a member of, then what is occurring is indeed theft. But at that point it is no taxation but tribute.
Note: I would prefer lower taxes, but acknowledge the agreement I make as an active citizen of my country.
I like your point on this matter. Having protection for property and assets you have gained is very important. But, does this system have to maintain the way that it is? What if we had a decentralized (hello crypto) way of arbitrating disputes over ownership that provided the same legal protections as a paid government organization?
I feel, being only 24 years old, that I was born into a situation I didn't ask for. Granted that's how everyone is born, luck of the draw I suppose, but why should I settle for a system that takes from me and gives back in confusing and often corrupted ways. I believe there's always a better way, it's just a matter of time before finding and implementing it successfully.
I see taxes as a currently necessary double-edged sword. It keeps the current system flowing. Without that, we would have chaos. With them, we have unrest and discomfort. Seems likes we are in need of a solution.
A decentralized government is still a government (although one that I would much prefer). Government is simply an implementation of an agreement between a group of people. I'm totally for better implementations of outdated systems that are more people friendly. But you are always going to need some entity to provide legal protections. And you always have people that try to take advantage of it.
Maybe we need an AI governing entity? Hmm, seems dangerous. Maybe not.
Yes I agree, I did not mean to imply that we did not need governance. Just a different form of it, as you said.
Skynet?!