Taxes. (1 Viewer)

[Nitrohaulic]

The story may or may not be accurate, however, the fact is...the top 5% of wage earners pay over 50% of all income taxes. The top 50% pay over 95% of all income taxes, the bottom pay, well, nothing or next to nothing.

Go here and see for yourself,

http://www.treas.gov/press/releases/reports/factsheetwhopaysmostindividualincometaxes.update.pdf

Don't forget about those who actually MAKE money on the deal. What's it called? "Earned income credit?" Welfare by another name via the income taxes paid by others?

 

[yoda]

So then you're saying that a person who operates his racing as a business should not take advantage of any "loophole(s)" in the tax code, or make all the deductions that they can?

Deductions aren't loopholes, Don. A true loophole is one that is an interpretation of the tax law that a good tax attorney, if caught, can explain sucessfully in case of an audit, but is not widely known (or used) by the general populace.

As far as a racing operation using deductions, a smart business owner/operator knows what sends up a red flag and what slides under the radar. And as a former small business owner and now a contracted working entity, I have had my fair share of Uncle Sam's bloodhounds tell me what and what will not fly come April 15th. If you run a racing operation, it should be important enough to you not to try something "Enronish" that could risk you losing your operation (obvious to some, not so to others that we see on occasion on the For Sale boards..)

As far as taking from the rich, giving to the poor, blah blah, blah- we aren't exactly in the best place for that not to happen (Planet Earth). Seems to happen everywhere; some better than others, some ALOT worse. Most goverments work on the premise that they are the brokest entity going, and THEY are the biggest welfare recipients of all.

As far as personal income tax is concerned, yeah, the top 1%- 5% personally get wacked for the big chunk of change.. It's too bad that that can't be said for the top 5% of CORPORATIONS. If those COMPANIES would participate fairly in the pitch into the kitty, I bet those "poor" Top 5 percenters personally might have a bit of relief that you feel that they deserve.

 

[Nitrohaulic]

Our federal gov't just has a LOT more power than the founders ever intended it to have. How many still think the Civil War was about slavery?

Just saying that something happens in a lot of places doesn't make it right. I hope that we both have the same intentions, in that we want what's going to provide the best overall benefit for the most people. There's never going to be a perfect scenario in which ever dollar is used in a manner that everybody approves of. I still say you'll see more benefit when they're in the hands of the owner instead of in the hands of the confiscators.

Do many wealthy people waste money on things we can't afford? Of course they do. I'll just bet the people who supply the goods and services for those things are glad they do.

 

[TJ]

Taxes....a bummer of a conversation... Less than .5% of Americans gross over 1 million dollars and pay less than 8% of that gross for taxes were most pay 7-19% in taxes.
If you can get your deductions to a loss of income you will be taxed less.
The very, very wealthy (Microsoft/oil companies/tire execs/etc/) will never pay 8% in taxes. They filter it and donate any above estim. income.
How many of us go to work evryday 9-5 and complain? We work, go home and do it day in and out and never get ahead?
Well look outside the box.
What you are born into is what you will most likely become, i.e: if your father was blue collar you are most likely to be blue collar, simple.
I heard from an oil exec the saying " your return is equal to your risk" so go out and take a risk.
Oh and another saying I learned in a business class...#1 rule in business: MIND YOUR OWN....

 

[Nitrohaulic]

See? You're still equating the PERCENTAGE of what they pay with what's right and wrong, though. Talk about the numbers. If someone paid taxes on a million dollars at 5%, they'd be paying what the average household EARNS in a year. Apparently you think it's right while I think it's wrong.

I think the code should be REgressive instead of PROgressive. I think your percentage should go down as your income goes up. This could still have you paying more for the same government services in return. A flat tax is STILL too liberal for me.

I think what we do now would still be wrong even IF I didn't think we'd see more of a benefit from that money staying in the hands of whoever earned it instead of it being in the government's hands. Stealing is stealing and getting income tax in by promising it'd never go over 2% and ending up with what we have today fits my definition of stealing.

I still say that everything has to come from somewhere and that being happy because your employer is paying more in taxes is just shafting yourself without even realizing it. It's like the damn shell game they play with making "employers" match your social security. Where do they GET the money to match your social security WITH? Who has to earn it in order for them to have it? It's a cost of using you just like all the other costs, including paying you. In other words, that's one more raise that you're never going to see. People feel good about shafting others when they're actually shafting themselves.

They've fallen for this soaking the rich business and, like I said, do their financial thinking with their hearts and not their heads.