Happy Tax Day
For the first time in, well, decades, I submitted my tax return months ago, and have already received and spent my refund check. Na-na-na-na.
Sure, people like to bitch and moan about paying taxes, even liberals like myself. Conservatives hear that bitching and think “YES! The people are with us! Let’s cut taxes for the rich and corporations and eliminate all social services so the people can know their place like they did in the 1880’s!!!!” And then the people start screaming, rioting, and protesting. Why? Because people tend to like the services that the taxes they bitch about pay for.
Medicare. Most popular program in history, to this day, paid for by Taxes. The Republicans have proposed eliminating it and sending all seniors out onto the streets. They will pay dearly.
Police Departments. Keep us safe. Solves crime. Paid for by taxes.
Fire Departments. Puts out fires. Rescues cats in trees. Paid for by taxes.
Paved Roads. Stop Lights. Traffic Signs. The United States Military. Your child’s education. The Garbage Man. Public transportation.
The White House has released a web tool that allows you to get a “tax payer’s receipt,” showing what your tax dollars paid for this year. It is pretty neat.
All of the hundreds of thousands of things that you take for granted everyday, paid for by taxes. With all of our complaining, it should be pointed out that America has one of the lowest tax burden of the 34 member states of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development 34 member states. The U.S. has a low 24% tax-to-GDP ratio in 2009, compared to 34.3% in the UK, 25.6% in Korea, 30.3% in Switzerland and 46.4% in Sweden. The only countries in the OECD lower than us is Mexico (17.5%) and Chile (18.2%).
And while our corporate tax rate is higher than average, the corporate taxes paid were the lowest, thanks to the general loopholes our Congress writes into the tax code. Which is why if we reform the corporate tax code to eliminate those loopholes while lowering the corporate tax rate, which is what President Obama proposes to do, we will actually raise more revenue.
So Happy Tax Day America. Complain all you want. It is the American way.
well maybe if more people contributed to the tax burden, then more people would really care about how the government spends THEIR money. Also, make the wealthy pay a little bit more.
Actually, Tax Day is Monday this year because today is a holiday in DC (it’s Emancipation Day).
Pfft. April 15 is always Tax Day. Sure, you procrastinators get an extra weekend to finish your returns. Besides, I already published this and can’t take it down now. 😉
More importantly… it’s my son’s birthday. Headed out for dinner at The Queen… in the big, bad city! 😉
Pandora, I didn’t know you were coming over for dinner tonight.
Oh wait, a different queen. 🙂
Wish him a happy birthday from us, Pandora.
MJ, that was too forced. 🙂
LOL! What time should we show up with champagne?
DD – I’m just in a good mood today.
Dear wingnut parasites,
You’re welcome.
You are about to be tagged and bagged on the Internet:
“Voluntary” they say. Imagine seeing this when you start up your browser:
US Commerce Dept. is having press conference announcing details at 11:00 today, live streamed inexplicably from the US Chamber Of Commerce.
http://www.uschamber.com/webcasts/release-white-houses-national-strategy-trusted-identities-cyberspace-nstic
Oh well, the Internet was nice while it lasted.
Sounds to me like Sweden has the most sensible tax to GDP ratio. It’s probably one of the reasons why Swedes enjoy a better standard of living than most Americans.
so if you double your income,from $80k to $160K, you triple your income tax to the feds? http://www.wheredidmytaxdollarsgo.com/ , makes sense to me…
so if you double your income,from $80k to $160K, you triple your income tax to the feds?
Yup, that’s how progressive taxation works.
Until of course you keep doubling your income, and then you are advised to start taking your compensation as equities rather than cash. Then most of your income comes as yield on investments, and your tax rates start going down.
Why broke-ass-Republican-dumb-fucks are so concerned with how much Charlie Copeland pays in taxes is a mystery to me.
Obama will never close the loopholes, because promising to maintain them was his way of raising a record amount of cash. Those “5 dollar donations from college students and working families” were insignificant compared to the campaign dollars given to him by uncompetitive corporations needing government assistance to get a leg above the competitors. Does it really surprise anyone that the CEO of GE was appointed to be chairman of Obama’s council on Jobs and competitiveness and GE was given an unfair advantage in the free market by being selected to pay zero taxes after all of GE’s support for Obama in 2008 or MSNBC’s (owned by GE) support for Democrats over the years?