Monday, September 12, 2011

[I was recently asked how the top 10% of wage earners could be so successful in convincing the other 90% of Americans that they should not be taxed at higher rates.] The National Taxpayers Union posts the following information: The top 10% of wage earners pay almost 70% of all taxes paid, while almost 50% of American wage earners pay NO income tax, some getting money above and beyond welfare just because they didn't earn enough.  [As Margaret Thatcher famously said, "The trouble with Socialism is that eventually you run out of other people's money.]
http://ntu.org/tax-basics/who-pays-income-taxes.html
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[I pointed out that "the rich" must also pay Medicare taxes on every dollar they make, unlike Social Security, which is limited to the first $106,8000 earned.  I was roundly criticized as being totally wrong.]  As stated by government websites listed below:  Beginning in 2013, an additional HI [Medicare] tax of 0.9 percent is assessed on earned income exceeding $200,000 for individuals and $250,000 for married couples filing jointly. This additional HI tax rate [above the base of 2.9%] is not reflected in the tax rates shown in the table.
For Medicare's Hospital Insurance (HI) program, the taxable maximum was the same as that for the OASDI program for 1966-1990. Separate HI taxable maximums of $125,000, $130,200, and $135,000 were applicable in 1991-93, respectively. After 1993, there has been no limitation on HI-taxable earnings. [That would be 2.9% plus an extra .9% for those who earn $200,000 or more.  For someone earning  $200,000, his Medicare taxes went up from $3097 (on $106,800 of income) to $7800 on his total income.  Isn't this a tax raise?  It means that for every $1 million of taxable income, the taxpayer would pay $38,000 just to cover Medicare taxes.  As you can see, this has been true for more than 8 years. Hating the rich and actually believing that they need to pay far more in taxes demonstrates an effective strategy by media and government liberals that class warfare is alive and well.  Yes, the uber-rich who escape almost all taxation by using the system of laws governing taxation [like GE's Jeffrey Immelt, Obama's jobs czar] should have those vehicles taken away.  Those who work long hours (yes, the rich really do work hard, too), provide jobs and benefits, take risks, and improve our lives should not be taxed at rates that send them and their companies elsewhere.] http://www.ssa.gov/oact/COLA/cbb.html#Series    http://www.ssa.gov/oact/ProgData/taxRates.html
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With taxation in mind, the following came to me via email.  It is verified by Snopes:
This is about as clear and easy to understand as it can be. The article below is completely neutral, neither anti-republican or democrat.  Charlie Reese, a retired reporter for the Orlando Sentinel, has hit the nail directly on the head, defining clearly who it is that in the final analysis must assume responsibility for the judgments made that impact each one of us every day.  It's a short but good read.  Worth the time.  Worth remembering!


                                545 vs. 300,000,000 People    -By Charlie Reese
Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them.

Have you ever wondered, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, WHY do we have deficits?

Have you ever wondered, if all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes, WHY do we have inflation and high taxes?

You and I don't propose a federal budget. The President does.  [Well, most Presidents do.]

You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations. The House of Representatives does.

You and I don't write the tax code, Congress does. [At this time a possibly unconstitutional Super Committee will write the code.]

You and I don't set fiscal policy, Congress does.

You and I don't control monetary policy, the Federal Reserve Bank does.

One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one President, and nine Supreme Court justices equates to 545 human beings out of the 300 million are directly, legally, morally, and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.

I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board because that problem was created by the Congress. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional duty to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered, but private, central bank.

I excluded all the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a congressman, or a President to do one cotton-picking thing. I don't care if they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash. The politician has the power to accept or reject it. No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is the legislator's responsibility to determine how he votes.

Those 545 human beings spend much of their energy convincing you that what they did is not their fault. They cooperate in this common con regardless of party.

What separates a politician from a normal human being is an excessive amount of gall.  No normal human being would have the gall of a Speaker, who stood up and criticized the President for creating  deficits. The President can only propose a budget. He cannot force the Congress to accept it.

The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, gives sole responsibility to the House of Representatives for originating and approving appropriations and taxes. Who is the speaker of the House? John Boehner. He is the leader of the majority party. He and fellow House members, not the President, can approve any budget they want.  If the President vetoes it, they can pass it over his veto if they agree to.

It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 300 million cannot replace 545 people who stand convicted -- by present facts -- of incompetence and irresponsibility. I can't think of a single domestic problem that is not traceable directly to those 545 people. When you fully grasp the plain truth that 545 people exercise the power of the federal  government, then it must follow that what exists is what they want to exist.

If the tax code is unfair, it's because they want it unfair.

If the budget is in the red, it's because they want it in the red.

If the Army & Marines are in Iraq and Afghanistan it's because they want them in  Iraq and Afghanistan ....

If they do not receive social security but are on an elite retirement plan not available to the people, it's because they want it that way.

There are no insoluble government problems.
Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from whom they can take this power. Above all, do not let them con you into the belief that there exists disembodied mystical forces like "the economy," "inflation," or "politics" that prevent them from doing what they take an oath to do.

Those 545 people, and they  alone, are responsible.

They, and they alone, have the power.

They, and they alone, should be held accountable by the people who are their bosses.

Provided the voters have the gumption to manage their own employees...

We should vote all of  them out of office and clean up their mess!

Be sure to read all the way to the end:

                               Tax his land,
                               Tax his bed,
                               Tax the table,
                               At which he's fed.
                         
                               Tax his tractor,
                               Tax his mule,
                               Teach him taxes
                               Are the rule.
                         
                               Tax his work,
                               Tax his pay,
                               He works for
                               peanuts anyway!
                         
                               Tax his cow,
                               Tax his goat,
                               Tax his pants,
                               Tax his coat.
                     
                               Tax his ties,
                               Tax his shirt,
                               Tax his work,
                               Tax his dirt.
                     
                               Tax his tobacco,
                               Tax his drink,
                               Tax him if he
                               Tries to think.

                               Tax his cigars,
                               Tax his beers,
                               If he cries
                               Tax his tears.

                               Tax his car,
                               Tax his gas,
                               Find other ways
                               To tax his ass.

                               Tax all he has
                               Then let him know
                               That you won't be done
                               Till he has no dough.

                               When he screams and hollers;
                               Then tax him some more,
                               Tax him till
                               He's good and sore.

                               Then tax his coffin,
                               Tax his grave,
                               Tax the sod in
                               Which he's laid...

                               Put these words
                               Upon his tomb,
                               'Taxes drove me
                               to my doom...'

                               When he's gone,
                               Do not relax,
                               Its time to apply
                               The inheritance tax.

                               Accounts Receivable Tax
                               Building Permit Tax
                               CDL license Tax
                               Cigarette Tax
                               Corporate Income Tax
                               Dog License Tax
                               Excise Taxes
                               Federal Income Tax
                               Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)
                               Fishing License Tax
                               Food License Tax
                               Fuel Permit Tax
                               Gasoline Tax (currently 44.75 cents per gallon)
                               Gross Receipts Tax
                               Hunting License Tax
                               Inheritance Tax
                               Inventory Tax
                               IRS Interest Charges IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)
                               Liquor Tax
                               Luxury Taxes
                               Marriage License Tax
                               Medicare Tax
                               Personal Property Tax
                               Property Tax
                               Real Estate Tax
                               Service Charge Tax
                               Social Security Tax
                               Road Usage Tax
                               Recreational Vehicle Tax
                               Sales Tax
                               School Tax
                               State Income Tax
                               State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)
                               Telephone Federal Excise Tax
                               Telephone Federal Universal Service Fee Tax
                               Telephone Federal, State and Local Surcharge Taxes
                               Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge Tax
                               Telephone Recurring and Nonrecurring Charges Tax
                                Telephone    State   and Local Tax
                               Telephone Usage Charge Tax
                               Utility Taxes
                               Vehicle License Registration Tax
                               Vehicle Sales Tax
                               Watercraft Registration Tax
                               Well Permit Tax
                               Workers Compensation Tax


STILL THINK THIS IS FUNNY?
Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago, & our nation was the most prosperous in the world.
We had absolutely no national debt, had the largest middle class in the world, and Mom stayed home to raise the kids.
 
http://www.snopes.com/politics/soapbox/reese.asp

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