Politics

[Tundra Tiger]

On the heels of @jpr9954 ... My wife finished ours. Let's just say that I could have paid for a very mediocre bolt action rifle - possibly with a crappy Tasco scope - for what Uncle Sam is getting.

 

[Ray B]

What's aggravating about the tax code is previous rules didn't allow some deductions, for example interest paid on a piece of property not the primary home- when the property was sold the interest paid would be deducted from the capital gain. Then the regulations change- saying the interest should be deducted in the year it was paid- but you can't go back and claim the interest that was paid in previous years. so when we sold a parcel of land the purchase price was more than the sale price that we paid 20+ years ago, but well less than what we paid for the property counting interest and other expenses- so we lost money on the deal but had to pay as if we had a large profit. Thanks Uncle Joe- Biden or Stalin- they are both the same to me.

What concerns me now is the discussed Unrealized Capital Gains. We have stock that we purchased 30 years ago and it is now valued at 15 times what we paid for it. If we have to pay for the gains, we'll have to sell most of the stock in order to pay the taxes. Of course there is no provision for the government to pay me for those stocks that I purchased that went down in value. :<(

:<( :<( :<(

 

[Ray B]

DISCLAIMER: I do not have a Twitter account; I am not familiar with the operations of Twitter other than what I hear/see on the news; I do not have any knowledge of Elon Musk other than what I hear/see on the news; and lastly, I have been known to follow some unusual investment policies.

That said;

One thing I am now considering is the purchase of 1,000 shares of Twitter stock, then sending the voting card to Mr Musk, assigning voting rights of all 1,000 shares to him. Possibly if some others do the same Mr Musk will have a majority of votes and can turn the company around so that it can return to what it was supposed to be.

 

[WAB]

same here. very frustrating. i could have helped pay my kids tuition for med school and law school.

Well at least we know they will use our tax money wisely…

 

[Scott CWO]

I just finished our taxes last night. Let's just say I could have paid for a very nice hunt with what Uncle Sam is getting (in addition to what he already took).

Yeah I sold a business in 2020 that I started from scratch in 1991 with $1000 so I had very little basis. I knew I was going to get hammered and did! It’s like highway robbery. Work your whole life and the darn government gets 40% after paying in for years already!

 

[sgt_zim]

What's aggravating about the tax code is previous rules didn't allow some deductions, for example interest paid on a piece of property not the primary home- when the property was sold the interest paid would be deducted from the capital gain. Then the regulations change- saying the interest should be deducted in the year it was paid- but you can't go back and claim the interest that was paid in previous years. so when we sold a parcel of land the purchase price was more than the sale price that we paid 20+ years ago, but well less than what we paid for the property counting interest and other expenses- so we lost money on the deal but had to pay as if we had a large profit. Thanks Uncle Joe- Biden or Stalin- they are both the same to me.

What concerns me now is the discussed Unrealized Capital Gains. We have stock that we purchased 30 years ago and it is now valued at 15 times what we paid for it. If we have to pay for the gains, we'll have to sell most of the stock in order to pay the taxes. Of course there is no provision for the government to pay me for those stocks that I purchased that went down in value. :<(

:<( :<( :<(

Yeah, that thing on the unrealized capital gains is pure madness.

As for interest paid on non-residences...we are back in the state that you can't deduct it until the property is sold. Selling one rental property tomorrow, and a 2nd one in early May. We have a lot of "losses" on both properties. My accountant tells me we should get a fat refund next year, because there's more than just the interest to be accounted for.

As to the tax code in general, it is intentionally complicated and opaque. Both sides like using it to reward cronies and punish "enemies." It is a testament to the depth of the corruption that exists. We could switch to something like the Fair Tax, have it be revenue neutral, get rid of the IRS, make cheating more difficult to do and easier to detect. All of that, and we'd end up with more coins left in our purses after any given purchase.

But we can't have that. Even the retards on the left couldn't ignore how much the federal government gouges everybody, including "the poor."

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

Just what I was saying- REVISIONIST history. People that claim slavery and slave owners are/were evil are merely looking at history through the prism of todays values.

Just give it a few years and most here will be considered evil for one thing or another that will be viewed in the future as evil.

@Ray B not sure how you interpreted anything in my comments as revisionist. I didn't say anyone was evil, just wrong.

For thousands of years, physicians used bloodletting and leeches as standard medical treatments. Medical professionals of today don't do that sort of thing and view that sort of treatment as wrong. Not judging the people as good or evil, just wrong. If I agree with the modern medical practitioners of today, I don't think this is revisionist. The same logic applies to the slavery issue.

You and @BSO Dave seem to embrace this benevolent slave ownership idea. You both have all the right in the world to believe whatever you want to. Would either of you give up freedom to become a slave, even to a benevolent owner? I seriously doubt it. I find it interesting that anyone can be comfortable with slavery, regardless of the period of history. Heck, we've just gone through two years of complaining about the government telling us to wear a mask and demanding our rights to do whatever we want to.

In biblical times, slaves would earn their freedom after working 6-7 years. In the southern US during the 1700 & 1800s, slaves toiled their entire life in slavery.

Ulysses S. Grant's family was deeply religious and abolitionists in Ohio. Grant's wife's family were "benevolent" slave owners in Missouri. Grant's father in law actually gave Grant a slave by the name of William Jones. Grant tried his hand at farming and would work side by side with his slave. In 1859, Grant gave up farming and set free Jones. Grant was basically broke and could have sold Jones for over $1,000, which was serious money at the time. Ironically, Grant was the last person to occupy the Whitehouse that had been a slave owner.

Novelist Hamlin Garland, an early biographer who spoke with Grant’s Missouri neighbors, wrote,

“The use of slaves on the farm…was a source of irritation and shame to Grant. Jefferson Sapington told me that he and Grant used to work in the fields with the blacks. He said with glee, ‘Grant was helpless when it came to making slaves work,’ and Mrs. Boggs corroborated this. ‘He was no hand to manage negroes,’she said. ‘He couldn’t force them to do anything. He wouldn’t whip them. He was too gentle and good tempered and besides he was not a slavery man.’”

Whether or not Grant wasn’t a “slavery man” by inclination, we know he briefly owned William Jones. He does not mention Jones in his memoirs or other writings, so the exact nature of their relationship remains a mystery. We do know that in March 1859 Grant filed the following manumission document.

“I Ulysses S Grant of the City and County of St. Louis in the State of Missouri, for diverse good and valuable considerations me hereunto moving, do hereby emancipate and set free from Slavery my negro man William, sometimes called William Jones(Jones)of Mullatto complexion, aged about thirty-five years, and about five feet seven inches in height and being the same slave purchased by me of Frederick Dent-And I do hereby manumit, emancipate & set free said William from slavery forever.”

 

[Big5]

 

[Ray B]

Well at least we know they will use our tax money wisely…

To paraphrase someone that I don't recall: Just be glad that you don't get all of the government that you pay for!!

 

[Ray B]

@Ray B not sure how you interpreted anything in my comments as revisionist. I didn't say anyone was evil, just wrong.

The self-aware revisionist would acknowledge that the above statement admits revisionist conclusions.

 

[Kevin Peacocke]

Every time I see or hear a Biden flub or a Harris meander I can't help but think the democrats could not have ensnared themselves more completely. Whether they remove him and end up with her, or leave him there to degenerate there is just no easy way out. As the saying goes - what were they thinking? The downside is the pain of the damage this old fool is inflicting. The upside of course is the almost certain flip of the House and the Senate, and given the right candidate the presidency. If this is done properly it could be a red carpet for a very long time, but the question is who is this massively important strategy entrusted to? Is it just the RNC? If the DNC could get it so wrong, is that wise? Who gets to really plan all of this stuff in US elections?

 

[Tundra Tiger]

My concern is, if Congress gets flipped, and we get someone solid in the WH in 2024... we still have to have a government that comes together and makes good decisions on behalf of their constituents. Having full control has not always resulted in that happening. It feels like a tennis match at times, watching things go back and forth. But - to me anyway - the entire damn playing surface keeps sliding to the left, even as the volley goes on. Change is needed. Results are badly needed. Consistency is required.

 

[Scott CWO]

The self-aware revisionist would acknowledge that the above statement admits revisionist conclusions.

Conversely, sometimes a person who says or writes something wrong should just back down and own it. There’s no shame in being wrong once in a while. We are all wrong from time to time.

 

[Wheels]

 

[Wheels]

What a difference 40 years make.

 

[BSO Dave]

You and @BSO Dave seem to embrace this benevolent slave ownership idea. You both have all the right in the world to believe whatever you want to. Would either of you give up freedom to become a slave, even to a benevolent owner?

Whoa! Careful in your assumptions... You have obviously read way too much into my comments.. Slavery is an abomination and I would never rationalize it's practice... I was merely pointing out the lies of so many in regard to how it is viewed today which is to apply it in a context that is completely dismissive of its true and accurate historical perspective..

Slavery in its various forms has been an accepted part of most cultures for thousands of years. Throughout history, everything from all out wars to small tribal raids have been waged by every race on the planet and the conquered where enslaved by the conquerors. It was pretty standard business that was accepted as part of life for a very long time.... Does that make it right? Of course not, but it doesn't make it any less true either... It's just one of many fascinating conditions in the evolution of the human species that no matter how unpleasant or uncomfortable it might be to recon with, should be depicted accurately and entirely... That's all I'm saying..

A lot of creative, productive, and brilliant individuals have kept slaves or at least tolerated the practice throughout history. Given that, is it really fair to reduce their existences to nothing more than evil monsters by applying and judging by today's standards? As a realist and a pragmatist, I personally cannot..

 

[WAB]

The democrats, the party of slavery, have merely shifted from traditional slave ownership to socio-economic slavery. How they get the people they oppress to vote for them is an interesting study in human behavior.

 

[jpr9954]

On the heels of @jpr9954 ... My wife finished ours. Let's just say that I could have paid for a very mediocre bolt action rifle - possibly with a crappy Tasco scope - for what Uncle Sam is getting.

Rub it in.

 

[Tundra Tiger]

The democrats, the party of slavery, have merely shifted from traditional slave ownership to socio-economic slavery. How they get the people they oppress to vote for them is an interesting study in human behavior.

Yes, yes it is. And I've lamented on here on other threads that I see the same thing nationally, with my district rep here in AK, and with our local mayor. I do not get it. I scratch my head. It makes me have a low opinion of the collective will of people as a whole.

 

[Big5]