FARMINGTON -- War protesters who would like to make an impact without marching and holding signs can use the power of their purse strings.

That will be the message of a panel discussion titled "Why Isn't Everyone Who's for Peace a War Tax Resistor?"

The discussion, which is being hosted by the Western Maine Peace Action, will be held at 6:30 p.m. Monday in Room 202 at the University of Maine at Farmington's Ricker Addition on High Street.

The U.S. Supreme Court has repeatedly ruled that taxpayers cannot refuse to pay income taxes on religious or moral grounds by invoking the First Amendment.

Tax resistors protesting government policies date back to the American Revolution, said organizer Eileen Liddy. The Boston Tea Party was a tax protest, and Henry David Thoreau refused to pay his poll tax and went to jail to protest the nation's support of slavery and hostility towards Mexico. His 1849 essay, "On the Duty of Civil Disobedience," has been used as a reference by Mohandas Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Nelson Mandela.

"Since Congress continues to fund the war despite all our letter writing, demonstrations, and protests, I am joining others to try to affect the war funding directly by not paying all of my taxes," Liddy said. "This is more than just symbolism. Legislators need to know that people are ready to engage in nonviolent civil disobedience in order to get them to do the job they are elected to do."

Other Maine residents will discuss their personal experiences. Monroe resident Larry Dansinger, a 25-year veteran of tax resistance, is one of an estimated 10,000 war tax resistors in the United States. He administers the Maine Tax Funds for Life, which donates part of its proceeds to a charitable organization and keeps the remainder in an escrow account.

He suggested checking the Brooklyn-based National War Tax Resistance Coordinating Committee's Web site for helpful tutorials and general information.

For more information about the Monday's presentation, contact Liddy at 645-4755.