In response to UJ’s no doubt facetious post, below, encouraging me to make contributions to the federal government to help pay down the national debt, I say only: I already do make such contributions. They are called my federal income tax payments, and they are pretty darn generous, if you want my honest opinion. Seriously: [...]
Posts Tagged ‘taxes’
It’s Called Taxes
Posted in America, Politics, tagged America, Federal Debt, National Debt, Politics, taxes on November 12, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
It Takes Crust
Posted in Politics, The Economy, tagged budgets, California, California budget deficit, economy, Politics, recession, Tax Withholding, taxes on November 5, 2009 | 1 Comment »
Whenever someone would do or say something that was outlandish and grossly overreaching, my grandmother would say: “That takes crust.” I think she would have used that phrase to characterize the latest scheme developed by California lawmakers to try to close a huge budget shortfall. They have announced that they will increase, by 10 percent, [...]
California Vs. Texas
Posted in America, Politics, tagged America, California, Politics, taxes, Texas on November 2, 2009 | 1 Comment »
This thought-provoking article compares the performance of the “high-tax, high-benefits” model of state government (exemplified by California) to the performance of the “low-tax, low-benefits” state (represented by Texas). The author’s conclusion is that Texas is winning handily — and his conclusion is supported by population migration statistics, which show people leaving California and moving to [...]
Fear Of August (III)
Posted in America, Healthcare Reform, Politics, tagged America, Budget Deficit, Congress, Health care, Health Care Reform, Keith Olbermann, News media, Politics, taxes on August 4, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
I think UJ’s post below raises a fair question: how do we know whether anything we see on TV, or on Youtube, is real, as opposed to staged? My belief is that everyone should approach these kinds of things with a skeptical attitude, a willingness to listen to both sides, and the confidence to reach [...]
Tax Talk
Posted in America, Politics, tagged America, Budget Deficit, Congress, Health Care Reform, Politics, taxes on August 3, 2009 | 1 Comment »
We always have good — and heated — discussions at Webner family reunions, and this year one of our talks addressed health care and taxes. After I got home I ran across this chart, which was prepared by The Tax Foundation and is based on the most recent IRS data available, from 2007. The chart [...]
Weighty Taxes And Personal Freedoms
Posted in America, Healthcare Reform, tagged America, freedom, Health care, Health Care Reform, health Nazis, Obesity, taxes on July 28, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
This is a predictable (and predicted) development: people are now advocating levying hefty taxes on foods and drinks that contribute to obesity in order to help pay for health care. The underlying concept is that obesity has contributed mightily to increasing health care costs, so behavior that contributes to obesity should be discouraged. Taxes on [...]
So It Begins . . . .
Posted in Breakfast Cereal, Politics, tagged Breakfast Cereal, Politics, taxes, vegetables on June 19, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
According to this story, some Senators are beginning to consider ways to pay for the proposed health care plan. My guess is that, if a health care plan passes, it will be paid for by a series of different taxes, many of which will be viewed as taxing “unhealthy” activities — like drinking the “sugary [...]
California, Dreaming
Posted in Politics, The Economy, tagged budgets, California, economy, taxes on June 17, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Legislative activity in California is hot and heavy as the state tries to close what is now a $24 billion budget gap. This story reports on some of the choices that have been presented and are being debated. Should the gap be closed purely with spending reductions, or should fees and additional taxes be imposed [...]
Teabags and Taxes
Posted in America, Politics, tagged America, Politics, taxes on April 15, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
It appears that a number of people in different cities across the country showed up at “tea parties” to protests higher government spending and taxes — even to the point of throwing a box of teabags onto the White House lawn. It’s always difficult to know what to make of these kinds of events, or [...]
Tea Time?
Posted in America, Politics, tagged America, Columbus, taxes on April 14, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
I’m not quite sure what to make of the “tea party” protests that seem to be popping up all over the country — there was one in Columbus recently, for example — but I think it is always a good sign to see American citizens exercising their free speech rights in a peaceful fashion. We’ll [...]
If You Were King?
Posted in Politics, tagged Congress, Martin Ginsburg, Politics, President Obama, taxes on March 10, 2009 | 2 Comments »
My tax professor at Georgetown Law School, the brilliant and charismatic Martin Ginsburg, used to pose this question to students as we discussed tax issues: “If you were King, what would you do?” He wanted people to think about the concepts underlying the tax code and whether they agreed or disagreed with those concepts, rather [...]
Is it Too Much To Ask?
Posted in Politics, tagged Politics, taxes on February 5, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Is it too much to ask that individuals who are seeking to serve at the highest levels of government pay their @#$%^& taxes? I mean, come on — millions of Americans pay their taxes every year! This kind of development not only hurts the credibility of the new Administration, it also feeds into the growing [...]
