To Tax and Destroy Video Games
Locke said he favors instituting a $10,000 per-abortion tax on abortion service providers, a 50-percent tax on violent video games and a 10-percent tax on soft drinks with added sugar to fund state government. "I take the position that the Founding Fathers took: that the power to tax is the power to destroy," he said. "So our concept is that we need to tax things we don't want and you want to not tax things that you want to encourage."
It's certainly a different approach than other politicians have taken in their attempts to discourage or control the sale of violent games. Locke seems to hope to make game development and sale in Texas costly enough that it will disappear. In addition to the excessive 50% video game tax, Locke also proposes unspecified taxes against video game manufacturers themselves. It is unclear whether this refers to just publisher or both developers and publishers. Texas is home to a multitude of game developers, including id Software, 3DRealms, Ritual Entertainment, Gearbox Software, Ensemble Studios, and others. In the state primaries in March, Locke will go up against three opponents, including current governor Rick Perry.
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Gubernatorial candidate seeks support
By Jim McBride
jim.mcbride@amarillo.com
A Republican gubernatorial candidate said Monday he wants to scrap Texas' property tax system and would institute taxes on abortion providers, violent video games and soft drinks instead to fund state government.
Star Locke, a Republican rancher and builder from Corpus Christi, said Monday he's been touring the state, trying to drum up support for his campaign. Locke said rising property taxes are hitting landowners across the state and he's concerned about government taking away private property from landowners for other uses.
"One of my legislative proposals is to do away with property taxes statewide," Locke said during a stop in Amarillo.
Locke said he favors instituting a $10,000 per-abortion tax on abortion service providers, a 50-percent tax on violent video games and a 10-percent tax on soft drinks with added sugar to fund state government.
"I take the position that the Founding Fathers took: that the power to tax is the power to destroy," he said. "So our concept is that we need to tax things we don't want and you want to not tax things that you want to encourage."
Locke said he would create a 10-member statewide board that would determine which video games are violent and levy taxes against game manufacturers. The same board, he said, would decide which companies portray violence in their advertising and would levy a tax on their products.
"Once it's reviewed, the tax would be levied swiftly," he said.
The longtime Republican said he also would take aim at obesity by levying a tax on soft drinks with added sugar. Locke said he also would like to eliminate city governments to avoid duplication of services and would place more power in commissioners courts across the state.
Locke faces Republican Gov. Rick Perry, consultant Larry Kilgore and Rhett Smith, a businessman involved in private security, in the GOP March primary race.
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