StrangerThan
Posts: 1515
Joined: 4/25/2008
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quote:
ORIGINAL: ArmoredOne
Bend over and take it, smokers. Yet another fine example of taxation without representation.
Just for a week, I would love to see smokers abstain from purchases and see what it does to incomes at the state and federal level.
$1.01 tax per pack, 20 bucks a carton.
If they ever do manage to get rid of smoking, I wonder how far up sales taxes and import duties are going to jump to make up the deficit, not that they can function with what they already gank from us.
One of the big promises that is the first to come out of a political campaign is the promise not to raise taxes. It is also one of the first promises to be ganked on the the way to taking care of someone or something. Smoking is only the tip of what is a deep iceberg, and it's not just the federal government. Just about every state in the union is looking for more ways to get more money from fewer people. I'm in New York at the moment and they're crying over what's being proposed as a massive tax hike. Among the items under consideration are sodas. Fat tax some of the folks here are calling it.
I've not heard any of this myself but the talk around the offices is that sodas, for one (I don't know what else) have been deemed unnecessary and unduly fattening. Then there's the tax raise on transportation. And for the person below who thinks it's better than a gas hike, stay tuned. States who have inspections have been automating that process over the past few years. One of the items recorded is your mileage. The plan on the books is to start taxing mileage since states are losing money from more people buying gas efficient cars.
Thought you were going to save on gas, didn't you. Grin. Didn't consider that the state or the feds are going to get your money one way or the other.
If you think your government is not fucking you, doesn't intend to fuck you, and will ever stop fucking you, you're insane. I heard today that it is estimated another 12.8 trillion will need to into financial institutions this year to keep them from going under. I also had a conversation today with a friend whose sister doesn't work, lives on welfare, has her home, her food, her daycare, her health insurance paid for, along with receiving a check each month from our government. Her rehab for crack addiction was also paid for.
Family took in the kids while mom went dry for 4 days. This is her second or third time through.
The friend, works about 3 different jobs. She not only cares for the crack addict's babies, she works from morning to midnight when she's not. Her husband left a year ago, just up and went and left her with the house and their two kids. She's on the verge of losing that house because they, like quite a few people, bought into the ARM market before housing went bust. Her house payment has doubled in the last 18 months, and while the loan itself is not that outrageous, the interest upon it makes the payment rather outrageous.
Her lender, refuses to work with her. She could pay the mortgage at the fixed rates being offered, but they won't work with her to change it. Actually, from what she tells me, they're just refusing to. So she takes care of 4 kids, two of her own, two from her government supported sister over the weekends, works 3 jobs, and just paid her taxes.
She's running a household off of 35k a year, can't get assistance, and will eventually lose her home. It's just a matter of time. The same lenders who won't work with her, call her she says, several times a day threatening.
You want a bottom line? Your government cares more about you when you do nothing than when you work your ass off and try to stay afloat.
The same state has an unemployment rate of nearly 10 percent. The governor is promising tax hikes to cover her budget shortfall - which really isn't short since the state acquired over 6 billion in stimulus dollars. In an economic downturn, it is a measure of squeezing more dollars out of the pockets of fewer people. The image keeps floating around in my head of some cartoon dude with tax collector written across his hat, holding people upside down to shake out the loose pennies.
You want to fund extended health care for children? Then get off your lazy ass and go to work. You want to believe your taxes are not going up? Fine. Stick your head in the sand deep enough and maybe you'll expire from the lack of oxygen and there will be one less idiot to keep alive later on in a nursing home.
If you want it to stop, then do something besides sit on message boards and complain about it.
_____________________________
--'Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to reform' - Mark Twain
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Yet another cigarette tax hike... - 
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