Or, even more abstractly, they serve as an alternative to inflation, which devalues money indiscriminately. Printing money and taxation both transfer value to t

Or, even more abstractly, they serve as an alternative to inflation, which devalues money indiscriminately. Printing money and taxation both transfer value to the fed; but the latter can be crafted & targeted while the former cannot. In practice perhaps the most significant realization of this is that inflation is a tax on wealth while our system today is mostly a tax on income.