Archive for February, 2010

American Idle, American Icon…

Thursday, February 18th, 2010

Just in case you haven’t noticed, more and more of your neighbors are out of work, but there’s more to that story. I find it intriguing how the rhetoric changes with the slide in the economy. Early on, President Obama praised private business, affirming that the private sector alone was able to create jobs and also stating that government does not create jobs. In the wake of the failed “stimulus” legislation, his wording has changed markedly. Now, government is the last best hope to create jobs and save the American people from further financial morass.

My father was a private businessman, as are my husband and my sons. They face something that the president never faces: meeting payroll. It’s easy to spend the old “OPM” — other people’s money — especially when all you have to do to get more of it is to raise taxes.

If you don’t believe that higher taxes are coming, you are deluding yourself. Polled extensively, only 6% of the American people support the present strategy of spending out of a recession. That’s a rather odd position at its core. The last time you were over budget in your household, did you immediately figure out how to go spend more money? Hardly.

We are in a terrible fix. When you see what is happening in Greece, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see how a population thoroughly disgusted with its leaders can take to the streets and turn violent. Remember Los Angeles and Rodney King? That horrific incident was in response to a unit of local government — in that case the police department. Can you imagine if such anger was vented on a national scale?

I hope it doesn’t come to a flashpoint that erupts in our cities’ streets, but it is not out of the realm of possibility. There is a small reading I suggest to you. It won’t take long and it’s bound to spur thought.

A beautifully written piece, it ranks among the most important works of all time. It is the U.S. Constitution. Its 4435 words (including the Preamble but not including amendments) guarantee your freedom. Vital to you is that the government operates with “the consent of the governed”. When was the last time you gave your consent? Not lately, I would guess.

Most bookstores carry small, paperback editions of The Constitution. Other organizations supporting liberty send copies out free of charge.

Do your homework. Arm yourselves with the facts. You will be shocked at the actions taken by the federal government that have no basis in The Constitution. One parting thought. All powers not specifically given over to the federal government are reserved to the states and the people.

Nowhere in the Constitution is there any language allowing the government to launch the massive social programs that have grown steadily since the 1930s. We are given the right to pursue happiness, but we are not guaranteed equal results. We can succeed. We can fail. At this point, our government has failed us.

If you don’t want to see more “American Idle”, support THE American Icon, the U.S. Constitution. Make some noise. Raise your voice. Complain. Write. Call. E-mail. FAX. Tweet. Organize your neighbors. Form reading groups among family, co-workers and friends. Study The Constitution. Defend it on your own behalf. A few in Washington try to do that, yet so many others simply ignore it and— completely disregarding the people and following party ideology — plod across the marsh of debt and approach the cliff of financial ruin. Those who tread on our rights through such legislation should be seeking career counseling. Come November, they’ll need it.

Hidden, but not invisible…

Wednesday, February 10th, 2010

Disclaimer: All data from credited sources are so noted.

Well, farmers know all too well that tax time is upon them. March 1st the magic day, not April 15th, so calculators and pencils are busy finishing the forms and readying payments to Uncle Sam.

For now, I’ll ignore the inequity of property taxes. Instead, I urge you to read about the hidden taxes Americans roundly ignore.
Judi Hasson tells us that, whether you’re making a PBJ sandwich or an airline reservation, you’re coming into close contact with invisible charges that make goods and services more expensive.
I used a number of websites for the following information, because finding precise tax information is a challenge. This may save you a trip to beauty shop, girls. It will curl your hair!
February 10, 2010:
You don’t even know it when you pay many federal taxes. Often, the tax does not appear on the sales slip and is simply lumped into the price of goods.

Cruising or flying anywhere? If you want to cruise down the Ohio River — or any U.S. waterway — there’s a $3.60 tax on anyone transported by boat.
Here’s what you pay for a flight: a 7.5% tax on a domestic ticket, a $3.60 tax for each segment of a flight and, since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, a $2.50 security charge on every segment. That’s in addition to a $16.10 international arrival/departure tax and a passenger-facility charge of up to $4.50.

Fishing isn’t free, either. A fisherman pays 10% of the sales price on sport-fishing equipment. Nor is archery. The federal tax on arrows is 45 cents per shaft. Quivers and broad-heads are taxed at 11%.

Handgun purchasers pay 10% of the sales price to the feds; other firearms, along with ammunition, are taxed at 11%.

A childhood DPT vaccine (diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus) has a 75-cent charge per shot, paid into a trust fund for those injured by the shot.
Here is one the federal government rarely collects: a 2% tax on unauthorized wagering. Yes, it’s on the books, and it is directed at criminal cartels. When you bet legally, there’s a 25-cent tax on every bet you place.

Thrilled that your son or daughter got a college scholarship? There may be federal taxes on some parts of the award. Room, board and pocket money are taxable, but tuition is not.

The next time you find buried treasure, remember to With gold prices soaring and remote sites beckoning prospectors, remember this. report it as regular income.

Even if you’re so broke that creditors have forgiven part of your debt, you’re not off the hook. The forgiven portion of your debt is “income” and may be taxable as such.

* Note that there are exceptions if the debt is secured by your principal residence or you declare bankruptcy or are insolvent at the time.

I find the next statement applicable to the current gaming climate in Indiana. If you take a bribe or steal property, it’s income unless you give it back before the tax year is over. Just a tip.

So much for honesty these days, folks, so back to the sources….
Every tax has a purpose, political, practical or puritanical. Some are designed to cover the cost of services, like the 18.4-cent gas tax that pays for highway construction, and the airline-ticket tax helps build runways.
Other taxes are meant to discourage certain types of behavior as well as raise revenue, like the $13.50-a-gallon tax on hard liquor and the 33-cent tax on a six-pack.
Federal tax on a pack of cigarettes was 39 cents, until Feb. 4, 2009, when it was increased to $1.01 per pack. Since Jan. 1, 2002, 44 states and the District of Columbia have increased cigarette taxes to an average of $1.23 per pack. The 39-cent-a-pack federal tobacco tax contributed $7.7 billion to the Treasury every year.

Think about moving to the “Big Apple”? If you smoke, you might think twice. You’ll pay a cigarette tax of $4.25 per pack on all cigarettes possessed for sale or use in New York City — $2.75 is New York State tax and $1.50 is New York City tax.
* For your information, the federal cigarette tax increase will be used to fund health care for children not otherwise covered.
Buy a “gas guzzler” and the manufacturer pays a tax of up to $7,700 but passes it along — right on the sticker — to you, the buyer. American University’s Pike says the United States is the only industrialized country that does not have a value-added tax, which taxes all consumer goods and services at each step of the manufacturing process.
“A value-added tax could replace all these nickel-and-dime annoyance taxes,” he says. But it also would level the playing field so everyone would be taxed for buying products and not just specialty items.
Are we ready accept and apply everything Europeans do? Give me air!
Under a system of value-added taxes, each time a company handles a product on its way from raw material to finished good, it pays a tax on the increased value. Ultimately, all those taxes are reflected in the retail price of a good or service.
Of course, that makes a VAT the ultimate hidden tax. Keep an eye on Congress. Our representatives are currently looking into the possibility of a VAT to raise additional revenue.
Everyone knows there are federal taxes on tobacco and alcohol, but did you know the feds take a bite out of your afternoon candy bar?
There are plenty of unexpected taxes that raise the price of goods and services — sin taxes, import duties, user fees and excise taxes on everything from “gas guzzlers” and firearms to communications services and air travel.
“The less visible a tax is, the less likely taxpayers will be aware of it, unsettled by it and advocate against it,” says economist Jared Bernstein of the Economic Policy Institute in Washington, D.C.
You may feel lucky in Las Vegas, hit the lottery or have a good day at the racetrack, but all winnings are taxable as regular income.
There’s a tax on the life insurance policy that your employer so generously gives you as a benefit if it is over $50,000.
“Most of the hidden taxes pertain to products we buy rather than wages we earn,” adds Pete Sepp, a spokesman for the National Taxpayers Union, a watchdog group in Washington, D.C.
THE NATIONAL TAXPAYERS UNION:
Taxes account for 35 cents of the cost of a $1.14 loaf of bread, 18 cents of a 50-cent can of soda go toward taxes, 72 percent of the cost of a 750 ml bottle of liquor goes toward taxes, an average of 43 percent for an $80 hotel room, $63.60 of a $159 airline ticket, $39.35 in taxes on a$153.09 monthly utility bill, and —at $1.33 gallon of gasoline — half the cost is tax.

Taxes at the doctor? In the drugstore? In the hospital? In your paycheck? They’re hidden, but you’ll pay. New hidden taxes that Congress wants on your health are on medicines, medical devices and health insurance.
Devices is a category so broad that it includes everything from condoms to Band-Aids. Oh brother! Hidden health care taxes in the middle of a deep recession? If this isn’t a reason to call or write your congressional delegates, I don’t know what is!
Do you tire of not seeing “Made in the USA” on retail items? Consider these facts:

Import Taxes We Pay: (National Taxpayers Union)

Babies’ dresses, not knitted or crocheted, of cotton
12%
Bicycles
11%
Brooms (other/than whiskbrooms), wholly or in part broom corn, valued over 96 cents each
32%
Brussels sprouts, fresh or chilled
12%
Certain infant formulas
18%
Electric blankets
13%
Fishing rods and parts
7%
Flashlights
18%
Frozen blackberries
11%
Girdles and panty-girdles
24%
Hammocks, of cotton
15%
Nonwoven disposable hospital apparel
4%
Nursing nipples and pacifiers, of plastics
3%
Peanut butter
143%
Roses, fresh cut
7%
School supplies, of plastics
5%
Screwdrivers
6%
Table linen of man-made fibers, not knitted or crocheted
12%
Telephone sets
8%
Babies’ dresses, not knitted or crocheted, of cotton
12%
Bicycles
11%
Brooms (other/than whiskbrooms), wholly or in part broom corn, valued over 96 cents each
32%
Brussels sprouts, fresh or chilled
12%
Certain infant formulas
18%
Electric blankets
13%
Fishing rods and parts
7%
Flashlights
18%
Frozen blackberries
11%
Girdles and panty-girdles
24%
Hammocks, of cotton
15%
Non-woven disposable hospital apparel
4%
Nursing nipples and pacifiers, of plastics
3%
Peanut butter
143%
Roses, fresh cut
7%
School supplies, of plastics
5%
Screwdrivers
6%
Table linen of man-made fibers, not knitted or crocheted
12%
Telephone sets

This column should be enough to give you pause. Nothing like the truth to set you free? Maybe not… There’s an old saying that nothing is sure except death and taxes. What it doesn’t say is that we can be taxed to death. Think about it.