Question

Why must we pay taxes? The answer is that the government needs money for many things, for example to pay its soldiers, sailors and airmen, to build roads, bridges, offices, schools, etc and to buy goods from abroad; and only the people of the country can supply the money．One of the most important taxes is income-tax which a person pays according to the amount of his income-tax．Whether he is a businessman, a doctor, a lawyer, a shopkeeper, a miner, or anything else．This is called a “direct” tax, because it is paid in money direct to the government．

Another tax is paid on goods such as watches, jewellery, new clothes, tobacco, wine, etc, when they are brought into a country, such a tax is paid as part of the price of these goods if they are later sold in shops．We call it “indirect” tax, because it is paid indirectly through the shopkeeper．

People usually complain about having to pay taxes, but they forget that the money is spent on the things that they and their families need．We need policemen to catch thieves, to see that men obey the laws, to direct traffic, etc, and they must be paid what they earn; children need education and there must be schools and teachers; we want our streets to be kept clean, and the wages of men who do this kind of work have to be paid．Above all, the country must always be ready to defend itself against attacking enemies, and we cannot have an army without paying for it．

Taxes, therefore, cannot be avoided．We buy our own food and clothes and pay for our own amusements, but there are several things that the State finds the money for, and that are necessary for us if our society is to continue．So we have no real cause to complain when we are asked to supply money to be spent for the good of ourselves and for our fellow-citizens．

1.Indirect tax means _______．

A．tax that one pays direct to the government

B．tax that is not paid directly to the government

C．tax that is paid as an extra amount added to the price of certain goods

Both B and C

2.Which of the following is right?

A．Taxes are paid to the sellers．

B．Income-tax is an indirect tax．

C．The tax on new clothes is paid in money direct to the government．

Tax is amount of money that you have to pay to the government so that it can pay for public services．

3.People have no real reason to complain about having to pay taxes because _______．

A．some shopkeepers are very rich

B．they need money to buy goods from abroad

C．their children need education

the money is spent on the things that they and their families need

4.“Taxes cannot be avoided” means _______．

A．people have to pay taxes to the government

B．you do not have to pay tax on some goods

C．soldiers do not have to pay taxes

all goods have to be taxed

Answer

1.D推断题。根据文章第 2 段：这种税款不是直接交给政府，而是以商品价格的形式由商店老板代收代交，从而可推知此题答案为 D。

2.D 推断题。根据文章第 1 段第 2 句 …for example to pay its soldiers, sailors and airmen, to build roads, bridges, offices, schools, etc and to buy goods from abroad 可推知此题答案为 D。

3.D 推断题。根据文章第 3 段第 1 句 …the money is spent on the things that they and their families need 可推知此题答案为 D。

4.A 推断题。根据文章倒数第 2 段的分析，可推知此题答案为 A。