If governments can just print money, why do we still need to pay taxes?

Not trying to be political or sarcastic this is a genuine question that’s been in my head for a while.

If a government controls its own currency and has the power to print more whenever needed, then why are taxes such a big deal? Like, what’s the actual economic purpose of taking money from citizens when they could technically just create it?

I get that printing too much money causes inflation, but then how exactly do taxes balance that? Is it just about managing money supply, or is there something deeper like maintaining the value and legitimacy of the currency itself?

I’d love to hear from people who actually understand monetary systems or work in finance. Trying to get a real, non-political explanation here not just “because the government wants more money.”