I don’t know why I am writing about this today. (Oh, am I glad my old keyboard is back!) I think people should be able to earmark a portion of their federal taxes to specific government departments. Don’t tell me it’s a logistical nightmare; this is the 21st century and should, theoretically, not be that difficult.
For those who think they are not being taxed enough, they should be able to check a box on their 1040 and designate an additional amount they want to pay. What these people shouldn’t do is to think they have the right to stick their hands in other people’s pockets and to take their money. (Being resentful and envious of people who are wealthier than you is not a sound basis for public policy. I think it’s much better for the country if Elon Musk has the marginal dollar instead of Bernie “Crash And Bern” Sanders.) It would be interesting to see how many people actually pay more taxes than they owe. Some people like to talk, but when push comes to shove many of them are hypocrites.
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I had what I can only describe as a panic attack yesterday. I think it was fueled, in large part, by having spent 90 minutes either waiting on the phone or talking to two reps at our gas utility company. I was so stressed while on the phone that on more than one occasion I thought I was going to pass out. The panic attack occurred a couple of hours after the phone call ended.
The process of having a whole-home backup generator installed has not been pleasant. The call yesterday was to get the gas company to send a technician to make the final hookup of the gas line to the generator. After waiting for more than a half hour, I finally spoke to one rep, who after a brief conversation said he had to put me on hold. That put me back in the queue and I had to wait another 40 minutes to speak with someone else.
The rest of the details are not important, but we should–finally–have our generator operational sometime next week. We hired the contractor last fall.
I think this situation is one of countless examples of how this country is falling apart. How about this figure…before the damn virus, US airlines reported 100 to 150 situations of unruly passengers every year. In 2021 that figure was almost 6,000! By the way, not all of the incidents in 2021 were mask-related although about 70% were.
I won’t see the future, but I weep for it, nevertheless.
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A welcome rainy day in the desert. Yes, I took these photos in a moving car. No, I was not driving.
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From Classic Cars comes this piece about Concours In The Hills, the event about which I wrote here. I had guessed that more than 1,000 vehicles were displayed and event director Peter Volny said that 1,100 vehicles were on display and that the crowd reached a record at an estimated 50,000 visitors.
Here are some pics from the Classic Cars article:
Once again, the car culture in this part of Arizona is just orders of magnitude better than it was in the mid-Atlantic. Switching gears, I would like to read with what frequency you want to see the final entries in the Cars A To Z series. I am thinking about posting one every two or three days until I reach the end, which–of course–is much more frequently than I have posted them so far.
#OddThoughtsButConsiderTheSource
#MyMoneyDoesNotBelongToYou
#ConcoursInTheHills
#somanycarsjustonelife
#disaffectedmusings
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Disaffected Musings 
I’m in the middle of trying to chisel what money I can out of Uncle Sam’s greedy hands, ie; doing my taxes. As Leslie Nielsen said; I picked the wrong week to give up sniffing glue. I always wonder the IQ of folks who brag about “how much I’m getting back.” Me: so how much did you PAY in? Deer in headlights look back at me. Folks like that would lose it completely if it hadn’t been withheld weekly and they had to write a check for the total each year. Pitchfork, tar and feather sales would go thru the roof if that were to happen. Between our business and individual taxes, myself and my partner pay more in taxes than a lot of folks earn in a year. It’s almost enough to make me go back to drinking to forget it.
Like you, I would dearly love a say in how that money is given away, errrr “invested in the future”. But I might as well wish for a tree that grows hundred dollar bills.
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Insightful comments well-expressed, sir. I once worked with a woman who not only claimed zero exemptions–the fewest possible, obviously, which meant more tax withheld–she also had extra tax money withheld on top of zero exemptions. I tried to explain to her that she was giving the government an interest-free loan. She said, “I can’t save money any other way.” I told her she was not saving money, but wasting it, instead. We didn’t speak for a few weeks after that.
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When I worked for a company, before starting a business, I tried to stay on top of what was held from my check. I always preferred to send them a check for a couple hundred than give them that interest free loan. That was taught to me by my father.
She said, “I can’t save money any other way.”
There was a long time talk radio host in Atlanta, Neal Boortz, who used to promote the following to prove you COULD save money each month:
Start off your day with no $1 bills in your pocket. Thru the course of the day if you buy anything, you CANNOT spend those $1 bills that you receive as change. Each expenditure would require that you use a larger bill. At the end of the day, put the $1 bills in a jar or envelope. Do this for one month then count those dollar bills. I gave it a try. At the end of the month I had just over $150. It taught 2 things; It IS possible to save money and it makes you think about what you’re buying. Do I want that can of Coke, knowing that I can’t spend the three $1 bills I’ll be getting as change?
With everyone these days using a debit card to purchase EVERYTHING, it probably wouldn’t work, but if you use cash, it sure did.
;
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Thanks again, DDM. I have never used a debit card to buy anything. I use cash sometimes, but use a credit card most of the time. My credit card bill is always paid in full and I receive 1.5% back in rewards. Believe it or not, a slight majority of credit card users do not carry a balance. Of course, the issuers make a fortune in interest on those that do.
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You are on point about how many would “contribute” if the system were voluntary. I don’t mind paying taxes. What I mind is how wastefully they can be spent. Our infrastructure is falling apart yet we continue to tax the middle class and give loopholes to those who least need them.
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Sorry, JS, but I disagree with your last sentence. If infrastructure improvements benefit everyone, then almost everyone should pay, not just the wealthiest. The top 1% in AGI earn about 20% of AGI and pay 40% of all federal income taxes.
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