Small plane crashes into Austin, TX office building

[Appaholic]

So he was a small business owner that couldn't figure out his taxes. And a consumption tax would have helped him HOW?

It was his CPA, that he must've continued going to, that failed to file taxes for 3 or 4 years.

So there's a family miising a member because this guy chose the wrong accountant repeatedly & didn't want to acknowledge his role in his own misfortune? What an ironic (& moronic) joke considering he writes about the "definition of insanity". Seriously, how many times did the guy make & lose his retirement? Maybe he should have listened to himself about repeating the same mistakes & expecting a different outcome....a petty, little coward...

[mainejeff]

Revenuers, by definition, have to be somewhat ruthless. Unless, of course, you prefer anarchy.

He does.

[Baldy]

I wonder if the guy was a Tea Bagger?

...or a failed left-wing Obama loving professor at the University of Alabama-Huntsville???



Try again jiffy...

[Ibanez]

It was his CPA, that he must've continued going to, that failed to file taxes for 3 or 4 years.

So there's a family miising a member because this guy chose the wrong accountant repeatedly & didn't want to acknowledge his role in his own misfortune? What an ironic (& moronic) joke considering he writes about the "definition of insanity". Seriously, how many times did the guy make & lose his retirement? Maybe he should have listened to himself about repeating the same mistakes & expecting a different outcome....a petty, little coward...

What a pussy. He should've blown his head off and left his problems out of my newspaper.

[youngterrier]

I will give JSO some credit though, most of the Kool-Aid drinkers at the conk Kool-Aid convention that was the political wing on AGS don't have the stones to come over here and debate stuff.

I don't know - the other side of the aisle didn't acquit themselves well either back in the day over there. I seem to remember "caucuses" being set up so that people didn't have to have suffer the hardship of having people with different views chime in. Actually, that was a pretty good microcosm of America today - neither side wanting to hear from the other side at all, with a bunch of non-partisans stuck in the middle shaking their heads at it all.

well there are 1 or 2 fairly new posters that I got in debates with over there and were very zealous of their opinion who have registered here but have given some fairly neutral comments and have not participated in nearly as passionate of a way as they used to over there....they're just chicken

[CID1990]

They have a choice to work there and they can suffer the consequences for doing so.

I have no sympathy for any government employee they have a much deserved target on their back.

That's a little much, Alfie.

Soldiers are government employees. So are police officers, paramedics, and firefighters. So are diplomats, for that matter.

Consular officer are, too. If you ever get into trouble, get hurt or sick, robbed, or these things happen to any of your family or loved ones, consular officers will be the ones to fix things up for you and help get you or your loved ones back on their feet or back to the good 'ol USA.

Consular officers also are the guys who say "visa denied" to people trying to schmooze their way into the US for spurious reasons.

When you retire in Bangkok with your 17 year old Thai wife, I'll be the guy who makes sure you get your Social Security check, and I'll register your half-Thai love babies as US citizens.

I'll still do this for you in spite of the target you see on my back.

Surely you meant government bureaucrats, right?

[CID1990]

A national consumption tax would fix all of this.

And you'd still need a revenue agency.

Maybe, but I doubt that agency would be kicking your door down because you failed to buy your quota of Twinkies or iTunes for the year.

[dbackjon]

And you'd still need a revenue agency.

Maybe, but I doubt that agency would be kicking your door down because you failed to buy your quota of Twinkies or iTunes for the year.

Apple has a lot of goon squads.

[mainejeff]

I wonder if the guy was a Tea Bagger?

...or a failed left-wing Obama loving professor at the University of Alabama-Huntsville???



Try again jiffy...

Your obsession with everything Lib is blinding you every other threat to "our way of life".

[Baldy]

Your obsession with everything Lib is blinding you every other threat to "our way of life".

So says the Palin stalker....

[kalm]

I kind of like this consumption tax concept. What ways could it's regressive nature be balanced? For instance, would corporations be taxed as well?

[CID1990]

I kind of like this consumption tax concept. What ways could it's regressive nature be balanced? For instance, would corporations be taxed as well?

This concept would be DOA just as soon as you put this tax on Jheri Curl and 22"s.

[Pwns]

I kind of like this consumption tax concept. What ways could it's regressive nature be balanced? For instance, would corporations be taxed as well?

Simple...you tax things like food, toiletries, and gas at lower rates than other things. Those things are a higher percentage of the budget of the poorer folks, and thus a smaller percentage of the poor's money goes to the government.

[CID1990]

I kind of like this consumption tax concept. What ways could it's regressive nature be balanced? For instance, would corporations be taxed as well?

Simple...you tax things like food, toiletries, and gas at lower rates than other things. Those things are a higher percentage of the budget of the poorer folks, and thus a smaller percentage of the poor's money goes to the government.

I don't know. I have seen a lot of 65" plasmas in Section 8 housing over the years (and I spent a LOT of time in Section 8 housing).

[JoltinJoe]

A national consumption tax would fix all of this.

And you'd still need a revenue agency.

But would you need tax lawyers? j/k (of course you would).

Still, I would prefer a consumption tax over an income tax. Few things about our govnerment strike me as immoral as the way it taxes a person's labor and income. (That being said, I thoroughly disagree with the comments about "working for the IRS" made in this thread).

[Ibanez]

Simple...you tax things like food, toiletries, and gas at lower rates than other things. Those things are a higher percentage of the budget of the poorer folks, and thus a smaller percentage of the poor's money goes to the government.

I don't know. I have seen a lot of 65" plasmas in Section 8 housing over the years (and I spent a LOT of time in Section 8 housing).

Don't forget the $55, or $65,000 cars that are decked out in Dubs and have $5000 speaker systems. Hey, at least they have priorities.

[houndawg]

I don't know. I have seen a lot of 65" plasmas in Section 8 housing over the years (and I spent a LOT of time in Section 8 housing).

Don't forget the $55, or $65,000 cars that are decked out in Dubs and have $5000 speaker systems. Hey, at least they have priorities.

This is exactly why we shouldn't legalize weed. We need a parallel economy where po' folk can be somebody.

[danefan]

Don't forget the $55, or $65,000 cars that are decked out in Dubs and have $5000 speaker systems. Hey, at least they have priorities.

This is exactly why we shouldn't legalize weed. We need a parallel economy where po' folk can be somebody.

Weed doesn't have anything to do with it. Education and nutrition are everything and are almost non-existent in our poor communities (both urban and rural).

[slycat]

They have a choice to work there and they can suffer the consequences for doing so.

I have no sympathy for any government employee they have a much deserved target on their back.

That's a little much, Alfie.

Soldiers are government employees. So are police officers, paramedics, and firefighters. So are diplomats, for that matter.

Consular officer are, too. If you ever get into trouble, get hurt or sick, robbed, or these things happen to any of your family or loved ones, consular officers will be the ones to fix things up for you and help get you or your loved ones back on their feet or back to the good 'ol USA.

Consular officers also are the guys who say "visa denied" to people trying to schmooze their way into the US for spurious reasons.

When you retire in Bangkok with your 17 year old Thai wife, I'll be the guy who makes sure you get your Social Security check, and I'll register your half-Thai love babies as US citizens.

I'll still do this for you in spite of the target you see on my back.

Surely you meant government bureaucrats, right?

Exactly. I don't get his beef with government workers. What target are you talking about? As a government worker I have people cuss me out but they are the ones who have broken the laws or regulations.

[houndawg]

This is exactly why we shouldn't legalize weed. We need a parallel economy where po' folk can be somebody.

Weed doesn't have anything to do with it. Education and nutrition are everything and are almost non-existent in our poor communities (both urban and rural).

I had no idea. Thanks for sharing.

[travelinman67]

...or a failed left-wing Obama loving professor at the University of Alabama-Huntsville???



Try again jiffy...

Your obsession with everything Lib is blinding you every other threat to "our way of life".

Mainejeff accusing Baldy of being myopic...

[danefan]

Weed doesn't have anything to do with it. Education and nutrition are everything and are almost non-existent in our poor communities (both urban and rural).

I had no idea. Thanks for sharing.

Sorry - must of missed your sarcasm......

[Baldy]

I kind of like this consumption tax concept. What ways could it's regressive nature be balanced? For instance, would corporations be taxed as well?

Of course not. In reality, corporations don't pay taxes. Just like any other cost of good sold, they just pass that burden on to the consumer.

For any consumption tax to be successful, it needs to be implemented on the retail sales level. The best way to get over the regressive nature is to eliminate it by making a prebate to the consumer a requirement, much like the Fair Tax does.

[BDKJMU]

I don't know - the other side of the aisle didn't acquit themselves well either back in the day over there. I seem to remember "caucuses" being set up so that people didn't have to have suffer the hardship of having people with different views chime in. Actually, that was a pretty good microcosm of America today - neither side wanting to hear from the other side at all, with a bunch of non-partisans stuck in the middle shaking their heads at it all.

well there are 1 or 2 fairly new posters that I got in debates with over there and were very zealous of their opinion who have registered here but have given some fairly neutral comments and have not participated in nearly as passionate of a way as they used to over there....they're just chicken

Or they may have chosen to not jump into political debates as newbie posters. I signed up for AGS in late 06', and didn't get involved in the poli wing until early 09'. Joined CS last summer, and didn't post much on the poli board until a month or so ago.

[BDKJMU]

As far as the consumption tax, I don't know if that is the right answer or not, but I don't think there could be anything worse than what we have now, with 70k or whatever it is pages of Tax Code, several hundred billion a year in compliance costs of both individuals and businesses, well over 100k IRS employees, and probably a couple hundred k tax tax accountants and attorneys. The amount of $ simply spent running our current tax system is just sickening.