Do you know that if you don't inject money into the economy you won't get anything out of it in the end? That's the basic principle of economics. We have to pay for a lot of things "without a return." People look at taxes as paying for nothing. Look, the government is, and always has been, like a business. Taxpayers are investors in the business. If a company like Google lost investment money, they would suffer. If the government lost tax money, it would suffer. As an tax payer (investor) you are investing in the well being of the whole country so that it can continue to be prosperous (or regain prosperity), and so you can continue to benefit from it. Now, just like any business, you aren't going to agree with everything upper management (or "upper government") does. But that's okay. You can always take your "investment" money elsewhere.