The top income tax rate in the past was 94% in 1944, 91% in 1960, 72% in 1970, 50% in 1982 under Reagan, and current rate is 35% in 2011. Our national debt is over $14 trillion dollars!! The tax law is ridiculous and not helping us with the checks we are writing that we can't cash! The tax code is 69-70K pages and last year over 579 changes were made by Congress in the tax law - this is what Washington is doing with their time... Are you following the changes? I'm not and no one is - unless you are a corporation or extremely wealthy and will benefit from those changes and can hire a team of lawyers and accountants to work you through the loopholes.
Check out the group Patriotic Millionaires for Fiscal Strength! These guys are kinda awesome!!
http://www.patrioticmillionaires.org/
Though under reporting is killings us too! The guy that mows your lawn, the tip your waiter makes, the lady cleaning your house, or the babysitter - not many of these guys are paying in to Uncle Sam. According to the IRS - if everyone reported their taxes properly, everyone would pay per person $2,200 less, but they don't and the guy in the middle (middle class) is footing the bill to make up the difference.
"Taxes are the price we pay for civilization." - Oliver Wendell Holmes
But we have to decide how much civilization do we want??
My Dad always says I should run for office. I hate injustice, always root for the under dog, and can't stand corruption or greed making the decisions for American tax dollars and trust me people I have seen that try to happen alot - every week at my job but I keep plucking away, doing my best to guard those tax dollars like they were coming out of my own pocket. When a developer wants to use $500,000 of your money on "benches" I think about justifying that to my family and friends and go heck no, seriously?!?! That's got front page scandal written all over it... Here is the thing about running for office - I actually would love to do it - but that pesky campaign finance reform hasn't happened. You owe all the people that help you get were you are (I mean campaign contributors) and no offense but that's normally not the working guy. I mean really, when's the last time you gave to a politician you really believed in?? Probably not a long time - if ever... Thought if you think about it, why should they get the love of thousands when being in the back pocket of one or two that have deep pockets will do... Plus running for office is tricky - do I have the right qualifications?? You don't really see government employee on this list - we have real 9-5 jobs! haha
Someday... someday I'll decide it's time to just go for it. Want to help work on my campaign? ;) Maybe I'll start on the park board or the planning and zoning commission. Hmmm... I'm sure there is a book out there or a YouTube video on how to run for office. I'll make my brother my campaign manager, my mother will clearly be my press secretary, and Dad will be my domestic advisor... he reads the paper! haha My Uncle Ed can be my foreign and economic advisor and my Aunt Patsy will be my tour manager overseeing logistics. Let's see.... Sister-in-law can handle fund raising and cute baby nephew will be there for photo ops - you have to be seen kissing babies! Everyone knows that it's the key to success! :)
PS - Get house and husband - that will establish me in the "community" and I won't have the brief military career but I've had family members in law enforcement - that should count for something!! Hmmm - I'm going to work on my platform and issues. If you have any ideas I'm open to suggestions.
