Ouhh! Snacks! The secret to any successful migration! Who's up for some tasty fried meat products!?

Anya ,'Touched'


Spike's Bitches 26: Damn right I'm impure!  

[NAFDA] Spike-centric discussion. Lusty, lewd (only occasionally crude), risque (and frisque), bawdy (Oh, lawdy!), flirty ('cuz we're purty), raunchy talk inside. Caveat lector.


Trudy Booth - Sep 16, 2005 3:56:19 pm PDT #3494 of 10001
Greece's financial crisis threatens to take down all of Western civilization - a civilization they themselves founded. A rather tragic irony - which is something they also invented. - Jon Stewart

The problem with a flat tax is that it's unfair to poor people. People with greater ability should bear a greater percentage of the tax burden.

yeah. and then if you start doing it flat in stages you just slippery slope your way back into a complicated tax code.


Trudy Booth - Sep 16, 2005 4:04:38 pm PDT #3495 of 10001
Greece's financial crisis threatens to take down all of Western civilization - a civilization they themselves founded. A rather tragic irony - which is something they also invented. - Jon Stewart

Seany, do you still have that recipe I sent you? Tuns out it was on my work computer.


Sean K - Sep 16, 2005 4:12:09 pm PDT #3496 of 10001
You can't leave me to my own devices; my devices are Nap and Eat. -Zenkitty

This is why I want a graduated tax, but lower and with no deductions. Then it would be easier and people with lots of accountants (read, rich people) wouldn't get all the breaks. I think I'm in a minority of one, maybe two, on this though.

I'm all for getting rid of the massively complicated deductions, but there's probably a really convincing argument for keeping them that I'm not aware of.

Seany, do you still have that recipe I sent you? Tuns out it was on my work computer.

I think I do, but it's packed away in one of the six or so boxes piled behind me. If it's important, I'll try to put a priority on digging it out some time this weekend.


Cashmere - Sep 16, 2005 4:14:57 pm PDT #3497 of 10001
Now tagless for your comfort.

I think, with local, state, federal, social security and medicaid we're looking at a 38% tax rate. They do blow.

The problem with a flat tax is that it's unfair to poor people. People with greater ability should bear a greater percentage of the tax burden.

As much as taxes blow, the flat tax blows more.

Aimee, that dress is fantabulous!!! I want it!

I swear I spent half the day not knowing what day of the week it was. Freak-y.


Hil R. - Sep 16, 2005 4:15:55 pm PDT #3498 of 10001
Sometimes I think I might just move up to Vermont, open a bookstore or a vegan restaurant. Adam Schlesinger, z''l

I just got back from seeing Jonathan Kozol speak. That man is amazing.

And now, I'm back in "I should forget about grad school and go teach" mode again. There's a Math for America recruiting poster that I walk by every day, and it keeps looking like a better and better idea.


Anne W. - Sep 16, 2005 4:28:44 pm PDT #3499 of 10001
The lost sheep grow teeth, forsake their lambs, and lie with the lions.

Some deductions are good in that they encourage giving to charity, investing, supporting the arts, etc.


Sean K - Sep 16, 2005 4:31:33 pm PDT #3500 of 10001
You can't leave me to my own devices; my devices are Nap and Eat. -Zenkitty

Yeah. I'm sure there's something more coherent that we could put together. Really, I just don't think any deductions should be allowed for corporations, but I'm notoriously anti-corporate.


Susan W. - Sep 16, 2005 4:31:57 pm PDT #3501 of 10001
Good Trouble and Righteous Fights

Totally against a flat tax. The less money you earn, the larger a proportion of your income you need for basic food, clothes, and shelter. IMO that means you should have a lower tax burden. Simple fairness.

On a much more frivolous note, when will announcers learn that whenever you say that an athlete has yet to do some bad thing (say, fall on their triple loop, or, and Dave Niehaus, I'm looking RIGHT AT YOU, give up a homer on the road), they fall on the loop in that very program or give up a homer to THAT VERY BATTER?


libkitty - Sep 16, 2005 4:32:12 pm PDT #3502 of 10001
Embrace the idea that we are the leaders we've been looking for. Grace Lee Boggs

I'm all for getting rid of the massively complicated deductions, but there's probably a really convincing argument for keeping them that I'm not aware of.

Deductions do all sorts of good things by encouraging wanted behaviors. They also do bad things by allowing some wealthy people to weasel out of paying their fair share. Personally, I think that the latter, plus the grief that dealing with them causes folks, outweighs the former. But I know I'm a bit odd.


Anne W. - Sep 16, 2005 4:37:23 pm PDT #3503 of 10001
The lost sheep grow teeth, forsake their lambs, and lie with the lions.

Really, I just don't think any deductions should be allowed for corporations, but I'm notoriously anti-corporate.

I definitely think that there's too many deductions allowed, but a lot of things that I like (symphony, public TV, zoo, botanical garden, opera) depend on corporate tax-shelter money for large portions of their operating budget.

The trick is finding a balance of how much to allow.

What I'm really in favor of is taxing the shit out of luxury purchases--vacation homes, yachts, cars that cost more than a certain amount, private jets, jewelry that costs more than a certain amount, etc.