Well, tax-day is here.... Yours & my money, (or lack thereof), financing the endless bureaucracy. Remember when "DUBYUH" was campaigning?? He promised "smaller" government, less bureaucracy, less "waste". He has, to date, SPENT MORE MONEY, AMASSED MORE DEBT, AND CREATED MORE AGENCIES THAN ANY PRESIDENT IN HISTORY! What ever happened to our Federal-Budget-Surplus?? Speaking of taxes; it is a common Republican-tactic to offer "tax-cuts" as "Bait". Portraying taxes as "bad", they try to become "heroes" to the taxpayers, by "cutting-taxes". AMERICANS DON'T MIND PAYING TAXES!! Most Americans realize that taxes are necessary to finance the operation of government services. What Americans DO mind, is the "gravy-train", the "pork", the irresponsible & reckless spending with little or no regard to a "Balanced Budget"!!! Americans also resent the overly-complex income-tax structure, which is often used to avoid paying taxes by those who can manipulate the "loopholes" with the benefit of lawyers, accountants, and "shelters". Very few Americans can even COMPREHEND the "Tax-code", let alone use it to their advantage. This results in the "very-rich" being able to pay far less than their "fair-share", if anything at all! In 1969, the American "tax-code" could be held in ONE "three-ring-binder". Today, it approaches nearly THIRTY VOLUMES!! The "code" is SO complex that only "professional" tax-preparers, and software-programs can decifer it. The employees of the I.R.S. cannot even provide advice or information which is "legal" in a court or I.R.S. audit. The U.S. Constitution says: (Section8, Chapter one) "all duties, imposts, and excises shall be uniform throughout the United States"... This part of the Constitution was ignored, when the government decided to impose ANYTHING except a "flat-tax". The "Income-Tax" is NOT "uniform" BY ANY DEFINITION OF THE WORD!! A recent "ploy" used by many of the "rich", is an "an individual-trust". These "trusts", which are available in many states, allow rich-people to put their assets in an non-taxable "trust"; yet STILL be able to use the assets, spend the money, and NOT PAY A DIME IN TAXES!! Some of these "trusts" are the properties owned by the "fat-cats". they can own vast ranches, lodges, farms, and buildings; If they allow some "non-profit" group an occassional use of the property(which is held in one of these "trusts"), they PAY NO TAX ON THE PROPERTY! Own a Billion-dollar estate, and let some "disabled" kids use it for a few weeks a year; and it is TAX-FREE!!! Then you can also "depreciate" it and ACTUALLY MAKE MONEY ON IT!! It is time for Americans to stage a "tax-revolt"... the only "fair" tax, is a "flat-tax". This week, the Neo-Cons in the Congress repealed the "inheritance-tax"... a tax -cut which benefits ONLY the very-wealthy!!! Sound familiar??? At the same time, Congress failed to pass a bill which would raise the "death-benefit" payment to the families of those killed in our military. Republicans claim to "support our troops", yet DO NOTHING TO SUPPORT THOSE WHO SERVE!! The "Death-benefit" is now a paltry $10,000 for the families of American soldiers who die in the Bush's war. This is an INSULT to those who "Pay-the-ultimate-price" in a war which was based on a LIE!!! The Republican-Lies just KEEP ON COMING!!If you are not OUTRAGED, you are not paying-attention!!! Is it any wonder, that military-recruitments are "down"??? "JOIN THE MILITARY, DIE FROM LACK-OF-BODY-ARMOR, AND HAVE YOUR WIFE & CHILDREN GO ON WELFARE??? " Not much of a recruitment slogan.... I guess that they truly anticipate having "An Army of one" sometime in the future!! ..... Sidebar: has anyone heard any repercussions from Rush Limbaugh's recent on-air-obscenity?? The self-righteous "Moron-Majority" is outraged and vocal at the sight of Janet Jackson's breast; yet "Druggie-Rush" CAN SAY THE WORD: "BLOW-JOB" ON THE AIR... and NOTHING happens!! Limbaugh made this reference, while attempting a lame attack on Bill Clinton. It seems that, again, when the "talking-heads" of the neo-con agenda cannot address real issues, they resort to personal attacks on Clinton. They CANNOT discuss the economy, the war, employment-stats., Social-Security, the deficit, the environment, "Homeland-Security", or hundreds of ACTUAL-ISSUES, so they resort to "blaming-Clinton"!!! This week, the Stock Market REACHED A LEVEL LOWER THAN THAT WHEN BUSH "TOOK OFFICE" IN 2000!! (This is the Stock Market, that Bush wants us to invest Social-Security money!!) If we had invested ( "privatized") our Social Security funds back in 200, we would now be showing a "NET-LOSS"!!! And what ever happened to the "Federal-Budget-Surplus", which is NEVER credited to Bill Clinton??? Bush's lack-of-fical-responsibility is MIND-BOGGLING!!! How can ANY rational American have trust in an administration which attacks any serious criticism, LIES and fabricates "news-stories", attempts to re-write Congressional-rules to avoid reprimand, "cherry-picks" C.I.A. intelligence to justify pre-conceived plans for war, cuts funding to schools and law-enforcement, panders to ultra-right-wing "Christian" fanatics, shows NO evidence of actual "Christian-Ethics", and profits from the killing in Iraq??? As George Carlin once said: "Imagine how stupid the "average person" is; AT LEAST HALF OF ALL PEOPLE ARE MORE STUPID THAN THAT!!!"" (I guess that the Republican cuts to schools, are an attempt to "dumb-down" American; and maintain their grip on the "un-informed")....... KNOWLEDGE IS POWER!!!!...................Dave
- posted by Dave @ 10:56 AM