You are quite correct in your literal interpretation of the US Constitution. But let us remember that the US Constitution was not imposed before, during or immediately after the American Revolution but at least a decade later.
Anyway, I believe almost unilaterally most, if not all, of the authors of our freedom, from the layman with his rifle hiding in a muddy puddle along the road to shoot at red coats, all the way up to the lofty dignitaries like Thomas Jefferson would state, very emphatically, that taxation is a method to raise money in times of very dire need, not an existence that should be experienced on a daily basis as the “norm.”
The reason I feel comfortable saying this is because of how loathe all the important men in American history have been to implement any form of tax throughout our early history. This is not to make an argument that taxes are good or bad, but rather an argument to state that at the time this nation was building the foundation of itself that made us great, taxes were viewed upon with great distaste and, at times, hostile resistance.
So it seems plainly obvious that taxes, levied on any portion or the whole of the people, were not the cause of us becoming a great nation, but rather, despite the very short periods of time taxes were levied on the people, we grew to greatness anyway.
So what did make us great? I think it pretty simple to see:
1. We relied on our own resources
2. We instilled in our children a strong work ethic from early in their lives
3. We rewarded success with greater power and influence while punishing failure with less power and influence
4. Those that chose to be educated were educated stringently in skills vital to the success of this nation (mathematics, science, literature, history, law and medicine {I know medicine is a science, but usually we discuss it as its own field}).
5. Educators and those who were educated were held in great respect and regard.
6. Those elected to guide the nation did so at their own expense most of the time. (Salary was provided but it was never really enough to live on, rather an allowance to ease the costs of doing their jobs. President Adams only earned $5,000 a year for instance, which forced him to work his farm throughout his presidency.)
7. Immigrants were brought in, but only those with strong work ethics survived in this nation. (Read Sinclair who attempts to portray business owners as evil and immigrants as virtuous, never-the-less he ends up showing how it was the family’s work ethic that earned them their successes, not gifts.
In other words, friends, I believe what made us great is two fold:
1) Independence from foreign nations (Food, Manufacturing, Energy, etc)
2) Independence from meddling agencies (Unions, governments, churches, etc)
