Taxes. How much are you paying?

[bobjustbob]

Here in the USA we pay taxes on many of the things that we consume. Road tolls. Gasoline. Phone charges. Tobacco. Clothing. Many other things. It all adds up. At what poimt is it getting to be too much? How much of your $100 earned should be be given to government? I think that the government wastes more than what could be spent in the private sector or not at all. We have great roads and lots of ways to invest our money into building personal wealth. But the tax burden makes us a choice. Invest or keep our money in our pocket. What are your thoughts?

 

[SabrinaDeep]

60 bucks out of 100 in italy and getting worse. Canada, i'm coming back within weeks!

 

[Jagger69]

I have a great job that pays very well. My wife is a professional woman who makes great money. We take the minimum exemption and yet every year it seems we have to pony up again on April 15. We're empty-nester's now with the mortgage paid off. Our medical bills are significant but we can't assemble enough deductions to itemize and I have no dependents. I am in the infamous 30% bracket....not lucky enough to be in Mitt Romney's 15% company. We pay an 8.25% sales tax where I live. The plethora of hidden taxes that we pay into everyday goods is mind-numbing....I am damn-near taxed to death.

The fact that the government is funding all of their "grandiosity" (to quote Newt Gingrich) on the backs of everyday working stiffs like me while corporate America and the uber-rich get off paying virtually nothing is my biggest complaint about being an American citizen. I love my country but I am slowly being strangled by a tax system that rewards dishonesty and betrays trust and hard work....the very essence that made this nation great to begin with. There has to be a breaking point. Now, we are in massive debt with no way to pay it without destroying the fabric of the very group that keeps the engine humming....the rapidly-declining middle-class. I fear for my children....what legacy are we leaving for them?

I am ashamed of what we have done to this country. Our American dream has become our children's nightmare. I'm not optimistic about a turnaround since we seem incapable of learning from our mistakes. We seem more focused on the things that divide than the things that unite us to ever solve any real issues. I don't see things getting much better anytime soon.

Those are my thoughts, Bob ol' buddy.

 

[abrogate]

About 30% income tax

There is hope. Look at Germany. In the 90's they were saddled with high cost of modernizing Eastern Germany. A PM lost his job over this, but they really worked to control expenses. They also focus on quality and produce products that people want and are willing to pay a premium for. Now their exports are greater than their imports and they are in the a solid spot in Europe. Proof that a developed nation can turn things around and compete.

Took some balanced thinking and will power on their part. They are not purely a free market and it seems to work for them.

 

[SabrinaDeep]

Seriously...let me rephrase it: in Italy (not in Uganda) people pay 60% of taxes, before VAT on goods which is at 21%
If you are earning good and paying 30% of taxes and you complain, well...think again, because the European model is gonna hit you soon and then you're not gonna be happy at all, trust me.

I have a great job that pays very well. My wife is a professional woman who makes great money. We take the minimum exemption and yet every year it seems we have to pony up again on April 15. We're empty-nester's now with the mortgage paid off. Our medical bills are significant but we can't assemble enough deductions to itemize and I have no dependents. I am in the infamous 30% bracket....not lucky enough to be in Mitt Romney's 15% company. We pay an 8.25% sales tax where I live. The plethora of hidden taxes that we pay into everyday goods is mind-numbing....I am damn-near taxed to death.

The fact that the government is funding all of their "grandiosity" (to quote Newt Gingrich) on the backs of everyday working stiffs like me while corporate America and the uber-rich get off paying virtually nothing is my biggest complaint about being an American citizen. I love my country but I am slowly being strangled by a tax system that rewards dishonesty and betrays trust and hard work....the very essence that made this nation great to begin with. There has to be a breaking point. Now, we are in massive debt with no way to pay it without destroying the fabric of the very group that keeps the engine humming....the rapidly-declining middle-class. I fear for my children....what legacy are we leaving for them?

I am ashamed of what we have done to this country. Our American dream has become our children's nightmare. I'm not optimistic about a turnaround since we seem incapable of learning from our mistakes. We seem more focused on the things that divide than the things that unite us to ever solve any real issues. I don't see things getting much better anytime soon.

Those are my thoughts, Bob ol' buddy.

 

[SabrinaDeep]

About 30% income tax

There is hope. Look at Germany. In the 90's they were saddled with high cost of modernizing Eastern Germany. A PM lost his job over this, but they really worked to control expenses. They also focus on quality and produce products that people want and are willing to pay a premium for. Now their exports are greater than their imports and they are in the a solid spot in Europe. Proof that a developed nation can turn things around and compete.

Took some balanced thinking and will power on their part. They are not purely a free market and it seems to work for them.

Germany is stealing money from all the other European countries. I'm not sure what you are talking about. No offense, but obviously you don't know what you are talking about. Economic and foreign policy by Germany at the moment is the closest to Hitler's Germany than it's ever been and unfortunately all the western world will have to deal with it very soon, Germans included.

 

[bobjustbob]

Okay, so we are looking at 30-60% of your gross going to government for your benefit. Should this continue or is there any relief in the future? Do you think that another $15 in your pocket would be better spent by you or given to the government to spend for you?

 

[Straight Shooter]

I don't pay much in taxes. I take advantage of the tax code and all of it's various loopholes.

 

[Jenkum]

I would rather make $50,0000 tax free than make $200,000 and pay taxes on it. I pay enough tax with sales tax and other taxes like taxews on gasoline etc. I know that my taxes are going to prop up the terrorist state of Israel, and to pay for the killing of innocent people in foreign lands. I could never pay taxes with a clear conscience.

 

[adeptblue]

Germany is stealing money from all the other European countries. I'm not sure what you are talking about. No offense, but obviously you don't know what you are talking about. Economic and foreign policy by Germany at the moment is the closest to Hitler's Germany than it's ever been and unfortunately all the western world will have to deal with it very soon, Germans included.

Rubbish. Germany has made some tough choices. They do not overspend. Germany is the one who is concerned with the other counties stealing from them, "They want our money".

 

[Red XXX]

I've always liked Faraday's reply to Gladstone when he asked what use electricity might be! "One day, Sir, you may tax it" that and everything you can think of!

 

[STDiva]

I moved to Canada because I felt so incredibly under taxed.

 

[Jagger69]

Seriously...let me rephrase it: in Italy (not in Uganda) people pay 60% of taxes, before VAT on goods which is at 21%
If you are earning good and paying 30% of taxes and you complain, well...think again, because the European model is gonna hit you soon and then you're not gonna be happy at all, trust me.

So in Italy people expend 81% of their income on taxes? :dunno: Not according to this website:

http://www.worldwide-tax.com/

Plus, it's apples and oranges since Italy has universal health care (2nd best health care system in the world according to the WHO) and a number of other public social services that are not offered in the USA so you really can't compare the two. I also didn't take time to list all of the latent incidental taxes that I pay (personal property, etc) so my actual percentage is undoubtedly higher than I posted.

Okay, so we are looking at 30-60% of your gross going to government for your benefit. Should this continue or is there any relief in the future? Do you think that another $15 in your pocket would be better spent by you or given to the government to spend for you?

To answer your question, Bob, the $15 would undoubtedly be better spent by me.

 

[LukeEl]

We have one giant community swear jar, that is how our taxes are paid.

 

[Sam Fisher]

Bob, we have a law here in Colorado that says "any new tax has to be put on the ballot, and the people will vote to decide whether to pass it or not." Well, a few years ago Governor Ritter made a 25 dollar tax increase on registrations for everyone who owned a vehicle of any kind. Be it a boat, trailer, trailer for hauling things, car, truck, etc. The citizens complained, saying it wasn't put before the people for a vote. Ritter then came out and said: "It's not a Tax, it's a Fee Increase." See how he side stepped the law? The cock sucker!

Is that a load of horse shit, or what? And here's the real problem. Included in the Bill that he put into law, if you don't get your new license plate tag on the month it is due, another "fee" of 25 dollars will be added to your cost for every month you fail to get new license plates. In other words, if I am doing a total restoration on my 1954 Dodge truck, and the plates are due the month I begin working on it, why should I register my truck at that point, seeing how it's going to be in a million pieces for at least a year or more? But! If I don't get the license plates, I will be charged $25 for every month that I was working on it, when the day comes that I am finished rebuilding it and ready to get it licensed.

And one more thing.. I also have my motorcycle. Why the hell would I get new plates for it when it is due in November? It's not like I'm going to be riding it throughout the winter. But, if I did decide to ride it with expired plates and I get pulled over for it, well, the burden falls on me for not registering it (which I would gladly expect) But, if I let it sit all winter and then get my new registration in the spring, I'm charged that 25 dollars for not registering it back in November.

FUCK THIS OVER-SIZED GOVERNMENT OF OURS!!!

 

[Fatfishblu]

60 bucks out of 100 in italy and getting worse.

Is that because of Italy's restoration tax, or whatever it's called. I recall a conversation I once had with a pretty Italian lady when I spent some time over there in 2003. That's what she told me. Anyways, I pay more in taxes than GE, a multi-BILLION dollar company. What's wrong with that picture?

 

[vodkazvictim]

Vodkaz-Victim indutries PLC dodges tax in many countries on a massive scale, mines important minerals from small African villages without any ecological safeguards whatsoever (resulting in the death of vast tracts of rainforest, death and birth defects among small African tribes), hires African terror-mafias composed of child soldiers to terrorise tribes (murder and rape) into moving out of mineral rich areas in order to mine them, strips vast tracts of Amazon rainforest to make cheap wooden furniture, offers child-sex holidays to Thailand, Vietnam and Goa, offers videos of said holidays for sale over the internet without forwarding any of the proceeds to the victims and encourages Islamic extremism with funding taken direct from various government sources (including compensation funds for widows of the war against terror).

I pay no tax. In fact, I'm richer after tax. This is what happens when you give call-me-dave head.

 

[Rey C.]

Here in the USA we pay taxes on many of the things that we consume. Road tolls. Gasoline. Phone charges. Tobacco. Clothing. Many other things. It all adds up. At what poimt is it getting to be too much? How much of your $100 earned should be be given to government? I think that the government wastes more than what could be spent in the private sector or not at all. We have great roads and lots of ways to invest our money into building personal wealth. But the tax burden makes us a choice. Invest or keep our money in our pocket. What are your thoughts?

That's actually a really good question/thread. And I don't know. My accountant gives me a summary report with my tax returns every year that shows my effective tax rate, but I don't guess there's any way to know what the total tax bill is (including sales taxes especially), unless I kept track of everything that I've bought and where I've bought it. I mean, prepared food is taxed at a different rate than say, canned food. And if I go out of state, those sales tax rates are different than in my state. And even with all of that, you have to take into consideration how many of the taxes that we pay can be deducted on the federal form.

All I know is that my effective rate tends to hover in the mid 20's, depending on what I sell and when I sell it, and whether or not I do any major "expensable" work to the properties I have. When I got really sick a couple of years ago and had some killer out-of-pocket medical expenses, I actually got below 20% for the first time in years. So here in America, if you want a lower tax rate, you either have to be a multi-millionaire money manager... or almost die.

Good thread. :thumbsup:

 

[Thomas O'Malley]

Godsembryo, will you try to explain how we get ripped in Belgium, or do I have to do it?
It's too complicated to explain, but globally let's just say we pay in between a little over 50% now I think.

 

[bobjustbob]

Rey C., you are right. Even an accountant has problems figuring out tax codes here. Here is a simple scenario. I want to go to Atlantic City. Just a 90 minute drive from my house. Lucky for me my gas price is lower than the rest of the country. I pay now $6 in tolls round trip. I park my car and $3 of my $5 parking fee goes into taxes. I decide to have a drink. 7% add on. There was proposed a 2 cent per ounce sugar tax. I don't know if it passed.

Rent a motel NEAR Atlantic City and pay 15% tax. Get a room onto the boardwalk and add another $10. It's like your phone bill. I can get a room for $20 but after taxes it can cost me $50. I'm not going to go. Lift the taxes and let the hotels/motels raise their rates a few bucks and keep it in their pockets. Make their facility a little more attractive for me to come back.

It's that nickle and dime shit that is easy to pass onto the voters that gets me. Once you allow the government to get their hands into your pocket it takes decades to get them out.

A better example is here in NY. The Verrazano Bridge put up tolls till the bridge was paid for. It cost $320 million to build. Nearly 50 years later we now pay $13 round trip. $13x5? I'll take the pay cut plus save my gas. When will this shit end? Tear down the fucking bridge.