Last week, the House of Representatives passed a bill that plans to extend the estate tax permanently with relief for families and small businesses. The bill, HR 4154, would effectively eliminate the 2001 tax act that planned to repeal the tax in 2010 and reinstate in the next year at the level it was at before 2001. Introduced by North Dakota representative, democrat Earl Pomeroy, the bill keeps the exclusion amount the same, as well as freezing the maximum rate at 45 percent. While it keeps the tax from increasing at all, the bill does eliminate the reprieve that was planned and expected by many in 2010.
The estate tax is simply a tax on whatever is included in a deceased person's will that is passed on to heirs or to other people. My question is, why do we even have to tax these transfers? You can't even escape the "death tax" by giving away your stuff before you die! There's a gift tax for those transfers. My parents don't get taxed for giving me twenty bucks to go to the movies; why when they die, will a lot of their estate be given to the government? Shouldn't that be my money? I'm pretty sure my parents don't work their whole lives, buy a home, and save money for retirement for the government. I think they're content with sales tax and income tax and property tax, but to have to give the government the money that they saved? I don't think so.
The rates for the estate and gift tax are high! If a $3.5 million estate was given to me, the rate on it would be around 45%. For the federal estate tax. In Iowa, we also have an "inheritance tax". So basically, half of the amount will be given to the government. I hope they enjoy it and spend it wisely! If that same amount were taxed as income, the federal rate would be about 35%, and less than 10% for my Iowa tax.
Truthfully, most estates don't pay estate tax; it's mostly the richest estates. As I read more and more about taxes, especially the estate tax, I am realizing that taxes are really a lot worse for the wealthy. They might have more money, but they likely worked harder for it. I know I have a lot, but I'm not excessively money-rich. I doubt the estate will even apply to my parents', but I can't know for sure. However, I respect the fact that they had to earn that money somehow. They probably went through college, and worked hard in their careers, so shouldn't they be rewarded for that? There's a mentality in the country that the rich should pay for the poor, surely fueled by politicians appealing to the multitudes of middle to poor voters. If there were flat taxes, the rich would still pay for the poor, because 10% of their income or estate is much more than 10% of a poor family's income or estate.
Before I go into why I dislike the taxing system, I would like to say that I am not against taxing, just against the way it is done. Taxes pay for many good things in this country. Back when politicians did many things that mattered, they built things: railroads, highways, libraries, etc. Not only do these projects create a need for jobs, they are the best stimulus package the government could give. Buildings and highways need lots of materials, and building more of them spurs industry, creating even more jobs. Things just get done with the money.
Taxes also help to keep bank CEOs in their mansions, give money to ridiculous projects (rainforest in Iowa City??), and provide money for the government to do whatever it wants, whenever it wants. Well, you could write a letter to your congressman.
So, my question is, why is there such waste of money, helping to grow a massive federal deficit, even though there are incredible amounts of money going in to the government from taxes? The Iowa government has simply cut employees if it's budget doesn't come out in the black. Yeah, it's not nice to dissolve jobs, but it's not nice to have a deficit either.
I have often thought of taxes in this way. It all starts with a job; I work to earn money to live. To get to work, I have to buy a car and gas. Taxed. I get paid from my job. Income tax, social security, medicare, ... I spend money at businesses. Taxed. Oh, but then that money is income for them, they are taxed on it again. When I die, my estate is taxed before it is passed on to my heirs. How crappy. So much of our money is handed to the government, only for them to use more than what we give them to "stimulate" jobs, to stimulate the economy. If they just taxed less, wouldn't those things naturally be stimulated that much more?
I'll pay my taxes quietly, even the estate tax, but I just want to make sure that the entity that collects them is using the money wisely. Make sure that my hard-earned money isn't wasted paying for an huge bureaucracy that spends huge sums on things that don't matter. Make sure that our money is being used in ways that we, the people of this country, truly approve of.
Friday, December 11, 2009
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Final Shift Discussion
No more odd this, odd that. Daily Donut from now on. End of title discussion. Anything else that was stated in previous posts remains unchanged, especially about new discussions.
I have found a good website that I think I will use as a resource for this venture. It contains a record of congressional proceedings that is published daily as long as congress is in session. I got the idea to write about this from my local newspaper, which publishes congressional votes, so that will also be a huge resource for me. While the paper does publish the votes of my congressmen, I will also use The Washington Post's Votes Database for further information pertaining to Iowan congressmen and other lawmakers around the country. Lastly, for simpler explanations of the votes (other than the word for word record) I will utilize multiple other resources as I get going.
Because the Gazette usually prints congressional votes on Sundays, and that will be my first line of information, the votes I will be discussing will normally be for the previous week. The only thing I can think of right now that would cause me to write about something earlier is something like if the Senate made a major decision on the healthcare bill that is there right now. Another reason for waiting a few days to start writing is that it simply gives me time to learn more about it, and it gives my sources time to gather the facts and put them together.
One thing I haven't discussed too much yet is how I will take my view, and whether it will be party-based. I would like to just say that I don't affiliate completely with a party. It bothers me when people refer to Conservatives as republican, Republicans as conservative. This also applies to liberal and democratic. There are plenty of Republicans out there who have proven themselves to not be fiscally conservative. Alternatively, there can be conservatives who aren't republican. This goes the same for Democrats. Some of them can be conservative; they don't all want to spend, spend, spend.
This is basically my approach to politics. I don't have to associate myself with one party in order to have beliefs. I don't always agree with the Democratic financial ideas, but I tend to side with them on the more social issues (i.e. stem-cell research). Therefore, my views on specific congressional votes won't be based as much on party affiliation as they will be just on my personal beliefs. However, much like a reporter, I will do my best to leave my opinions out when giving the raw facts. When I get to the section towards the end where I give my vote and an explanation, opinion is fair game. I debated whether or not to talk about what my opinion is, but I think it's important to get it out there. If I wanted to be a reporter, I would go work for the newspaper, not write blogs.
I would also like to add that I am only using the Gazette as a starting point, not as my main source of information. You can read the section (go to page 8B) with the congressional votes if you want. I think it is pretty neutral, though.
Next post= last week's progress on healthcare (finally).
I have found a good website that I think I will use as a resource for this venture. It contains a record of congressional proceedings that is published daily as long as congress is in session. I got the idea to write about this from my local newspaper, which publishes congressional votes, so that will also be a huge resource for me. While the paper does publish the votes of my congressmen, I will also use The Washington Post's Votes Database for further information pertaining to Iowan congressmen and other lawmakers around the country. Lastly, for simpler explanations of the votes (other than the word for word record) I will utilize multiple other resources as I get going.
Because the Gazette usually prints congressional votes on Sundays, and that will be my first line of information, the votes I will be discussing will normally be for the previous week. The only thing I can think of right now that would cause me to write about something earlier is something like if the Senate made a major decision on the healthcare bill that is there right now. Another reason for waiting a few days to start writing is that it simply gives me time to learn more about it, and it gives my sources time to gather the facts and put them together.
One thing I haven't discussed too much yet is how I will take my view, and whether it will be party-based. I would like to just say that I don't affiliate completely with a party. It bothers me when people refer to Conservatives as republican, Republicans as conservative. This also applies to liberal and democratic. There are plenty of Republicans out there who have proven themselves to not be fiscally conservative. Alternatively, there can be conservatives who aren't republican. This goes the same for Democrats. Some of them can be conservative; they don't all want to spend, spend, spend.
This is basically my approach to politics. I don't have to associate myself with one party in order to have beliefs. I don't always agree with the Democratic financial ideas, but I tend to side with them on the more social issues (i.e. stem-cell research). Therefore, my views on specific congressional votes won't be based as much on party affiliation as they will be just on my personal beliefs. However, much like a reporter, I will do my best to leave my opinions out when giving the raw facts. When I get to the section towards the end where I give my vote and an explanation, opinion is fair game. I debated whether or not to talk about what my opinion is, but I think it's important to get it out there. If I wanted to be a reporter, I would go work for the newspaper, not write blogs.
I would also like to add that I am only using the Gazette as a starting point, not as my main source of information. You can read the section (go to page 8B) with the congressional votes if you want. I think it is pretty neutral, though.
Next post= last week's progress on healthcare (finally).
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Oddities Bloggus
Violà! Welcome to Oddities Congressionus the evil twin of Oddities Humanus! Instead of focusing on the weird, just plain odd things that all humans do, I have decided to change focus (again) to concentrate the odd-o-meter on the Odd Humans (or not) that work for us in the United States Congress. These people do a lot of work, and I would like to discuss what they do for two main reasons.
Reason Number One:
All these things that our congress do can be so very complex. I would like to spend my time reading libraries of information on what has been decided recently in congress and simplify if for the readers. My goal is to compliment (I would say praise, but that would have religious connotations, and in this country, we strive for separation of church and state) some of the good work that has been accomplished. However, congress has proven itself capable of some blunders every once in a while, and those, of course, will be discussed.
Reason Number Two:
As a tax paying citizen of the United States, I feel that I have the responsibility to be informed of what my government is doing. So often, I think, people just allow the government to do whatever it wants in the hopes that it will do something beneficial. But when the government does something that is not beneficial, or even detrimental, the uninformed people have no reason to hold the lawmakers accountable. So, part of the reasons I am venturing into the political world is for my own benefit. By researching and writing about what goes on in Congress, I hope I become better informed.
Throughout this, for lack of a better term, thing, I would also like to make sure to include the votes and opinions of my congressmen from Iowa. Lastly, whenever a congressional vote is discussed, I will give my vote and the reasons for my vote. I ask the reader to give their opinion and/or vote, as well.
Please enjoy reading! I can't wait to start writing!
Reason Number One:
All these things that our congress do can be so very complex. I would like to spend my time reading libraries of information on what has been decided recently in congress and simplify if for the readers. My goal is to compliment (I would say praise, but that would have religious connotations, and in this country, we strive for separation of church and state) some of the good work that has been accomplished. However, congress has proven itself capable of some blunders every once in a while, and those, of course, will be discussed.
Reason Number Two:
As a tax paying citizen of the United States, I feel that I have the responsibility to be informed of what my government is doing. So often, I think, people just allow the government to do whatever it wants in the hopes that it will do something beneficial. But when the government does something that is not beneficial, or even detrimental, the uninformed people have no reason to hold the lawmakers accountable. So, part of the reasons I am venturing into the political world is for my own benefit. By researching and writing about what goes on in Congress, I hope I become better informed.
Throughout this, for lack of a better term, thing, I would also like to make sure to include the votes and opinions of my congressmen from Iowa. Lastly, whenever a congressional vote is discussed, I will give my vote and the reasons for my vote. I ask the reader to give their opinion and/or vote, as well.
Please enjoy reading! I can't wait to start writing!
Goodbyes Humanus
Thinking about topics to write about is difficult with a topic like this. It is so specific, that without being a psychologist, it is hard to write about things that are interesting for the reader and for the author. Some topics can turn out to be really fun to write about and, I hope, fun to read. My favorite two have been the video-based 88 Key Staircase and the story/article based Balloon Fun. These posts were about something that is interesting to begin with, and I enjoyed posing questions and discussing some of the causes and some of the events' implications. However, topics like these, I have found, take considerable time and effort to find. Yes, Balloon Fun was based on an event that was receiving widespread news coverage at the time, but something that crazy doesn't happen very often.
It isn't these posts that make me want to venture into something new. I think the reason I want to change is the fact that sometimes, I just didn't have adequate raw material to start with, and for my topic, I need raw material; it is hard to just think of something. So, I would like to say goodbye to Oddities Humanus. Stay tuned for the Irish American's new title and topic!
It isn't these posts that make me want to venture into something new. I think the reason I want to change is the fact that sometimes, I just didn't have adequate raw material to start with, and for my topic, I need raw material; it is hard to just think of something. So, I would like to say goodbye to Oddities Humanus. Stay tuned for the Irish American's new title and topic!
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