- April 24, 2024
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Editor's Note: The Palm Coast Observer publishes as many letters as we can fit in print. Send yours to [email protected]. Letters of all political views are welcome.
Dear Editor:
As public records show, Alan Lowe, a candidate for Palm Coast mayor, had a long contentious battle with the IRS who was attempting to dutifully collect taxes Lowe did not pay. The IRS battle was waged with Lowe utilizing his proclaimed radical sovereign citizen status and philosophy, his renounced U.S. citizenship, his contention that he was not subject to taxes or U.S. laws, and included a barrage of frivolous and nonsensical public court filings. He went as far as to sue the IRS and individual revenue agents personally for $5 million and even filed court documents arguing that he did not owe debts to banks and the IRS because he didn’t recognize U.S. currency as real money.
Also, while being pursued by the IRS, and in what appears to be a desperate effort to avoid the owed income taxes, he formed an anti-government “Church of Yahweh” and changed his name to “Alan Lowe, Ambassador For Christ,” presumably to establish a church-related tax exemption. Needless to say, all of these efforts failed, and his property and business were foreclosed upon, and the IRS eventually got what was rightfully due.
His professed sovereign citizen philosophy and long-running attempts to avoid paying taxes occurred when Lowe was an adult man and small business owner in his 30s. So, his actions and beliefs cannot be excused as some youthful indiscretion.
So, what was really the motive for his past radical mindset and ill-conceived IRS battle? There are seemingly only two possibilities. He either truly believed in the extremist tenets of the sovereign citizen movement or he was just running a calculated but ludicrous and destined-to-fail game to dupe the IRS. We may never know, but whichever conclusion is drawn, either one should raise serious voter concerns about Alan Lowe.
Margaret Minutaglio
Palm Coast
Editor’s Note: In a phone call in October 2020 with the Palm Coast Observer, Lowe denied being aligned with the “sovereign citizen” movement. He said he temporarily wanted to renounce his citizenship due to a spiritual awakening.
Dear Editor:
I have looked high and low for evidence that at any time in the history of our country a sovereign citizen has been elected to public office. I found nothing. Given that Palm Coast mayoral candidate, Alan Lowe, was a well documented proponent of this extremist anti-government movement, is our little town of Palm Coast willing to make history?
And, are we wanting to add a former sovereign citizen to the cast of characters we already have on the City Council which now includes Victor Barbosa, an alleged felony fugitive from Costa Rica, and the ultra-partisan Ed Danko? The three would represent a controlling 60% of the City Council.
Is this the unusual, almost surreal, makeup and the legacy of Palm Coast’s government we are willing to accept? I would hope not. We require, deserve and should demand better.
Ann LeVan
Palm Coast
