Got My Stimulus Check!

Only if you've got money

 

I don't get paid for preaching. My income comes from considerable investments, and in a way, I am thankful that my investments make me a comfortable living. However, I am not comfortable at paying .52¢ per every dollar I make. Which is my tax bracket.

So again, no stimulus check for me.

 

Uh, no. Of course not.

We're funding a war we can't afford. We have the highest deficit ever. So here's a plan - let's collect the normal taxes, and then - at GREAT expense to the taxpayers - give a tiny bit of their own money back! It is a brilliant plan because it makes the taxpayers think they're actually getting something, when in fact it was their own money in the first place. Money that could have just been taken off their tax bill instead of taking the round-trip through the IRS with all the frictional labor and mail expenses that went along with it. So we increase the deficit by basically taxing people twice (to take the money, and then to give it back). Awesome. Now everybody can buy more gasoline for that summer vacation, and everybody wins. Or not.

Where was the check box for "just keep the damn thing." ? Or at a minimum, apply it to next year's taxes.

 

Such a disingenuous statement, I'm surprised at you Daniel! Countless numbers of people have come here or started here with little or no money and today live quite comfortable lives thanks to capitalism. You of course perfer?

Wildkow

 

I don't think I perfer. Maybe if I knew what it meant I could be more confident in answering whether I do it or not.

 

You're kind of being an asshat. He certainly raised a good question that you clearly spun. Yes, he transposed a couple of characters, but you knew what he meant. I also fully agree with "Capitalism may not be perfect but it beats the hell out of whatever is in second place."

 

My buddy Keith got his check.

So, here is what $600 will get you. I bring you every cent he spent on Friday.

PANDA EXPRESS $15.77
DISNEY STORE $83.66
JOURNEYS $48.59
PAST AND PRESENTS $55.18
VIRGIN MUSIC STORE $20.00
STEVE & BARRY’S $9.72
CRACKER BARREL STORE $69.77
RITZY’S $28.02
TOM THUMB $38.12


For a grand total of: $368.83

Yeah, the economy is feeling pretty stimulated right now.

 

The whole thing doesn't make sense to me...

8 years ago, after a competent two-term administration, we have a budget surplus. Instead of putting the money towards the national debt, shoring up Medicare, or investing in other bits of infrastructure, the new Republican administration's solution is, "Hey! Let's send everyone a check!"

Now here we are, facing off-the-wall inflation, huge national debt, rising prices on consumer goods, Medicare cuts, and a costly foreign war. The surplus is a happy memory of a by-gone era, replaced by enormous deficits. And once again the self-same Republican administration's solution is, "Hey, let's send everyone a check!"

I don't know.... maybe I'm just pissed because I'm not getting one...

 

I got my stimulous check, but I had to spend most of it on a hargin flargin shlargin new hard drive. At least I did my part for the economy, huh?
woo hoo

 

WHAT surplus? We still owed billions then! I loved the Clinton era, but I won't be one of those fools that think that the budget was balanced under him. You, as a private citizen, never have a balanced budget as long as you owe money. And we as a nation, owe billions. Unless that gets reduced to zero, we will never balance a budget, or have a surplus.

 

Which begs the question once again:

Why the hell are we getting money back that we can't afford to give back? And why are we paying MILLIONS not just in the monetary value of the checks - but in the frictional costs just to return our money to us?! Can we have a big Wth from the peanut gallery? Who here things that buying even MORE gas, and MORE goods from China is going to be good for our economy in the long term? Who thinks that most of this money will be spent on apple pie and Chevrolets? Show of hands?

I just can't wait until I get to start saving that 18c/gallon on gas! Then we'll see some seriously stimuated economy!

 

Including the cost of sending letters to people like me, who do not qualify for the check, telling us that the government is going to send out checks, but "we don't actually know whether you qualify or not."

 

Actually, I'm bummed. Since I chose direct deposit, I should have gotten mine Friday. Still haven't gotten the notice yet either.

 

Gotta love it -

The "stimulus" "refund" is taxable as income...

So save at least $150-$200 of your $600 to pay off the taxes on it!


Does anyone remember if the 2001 "rebate" ($300 if I remember) was taxed as income?

 

That's the word from my accountant too. This "rebate" is not taxable income next year. He knows is stuff too. I won't get mine until sometime in July. Do you think there will still be any left by then? Everyone I know has gotten there's. I think the gov. should at least tack on a little interest if they're going to hold mine until July.:juggle:

 

Interestingly (to me at any rate) my wife and I got our official notification that we will be "stimulated" in the next six weeks.

Yes, I do still pay US taxes after all these years, and yes, I do pay NZ taxes also. I'm heavily into income redistribution ;-)
This means, however, that I will in all likelihood have to pay NZ taxes on my US stimulus payment, thereby unstimulating me all over again :-(

 

How do you end up paying 52% tax on every dollar you earn? Or am I misunderstanding something. In CA income tax (state and federal) maxes out at 35% Fed and 9.3% state or close enough to those numbers. Normally you can manage some deductions and it is a slidign scale so you can lower your effectie tax rate to quite a bit lower.

Only looking at income tax though, not all other taxes as it just gets depressing quickly then.

 

If you are self-employed you must add another 15% social security tax (if you are an employee you pay 7.5% and your employer matches that).

Many of us don't mind paying taxes (even higher taxes in theory) we just don't like the waste of tax dollars. We realize that in our society there are costs like police, fire, schools, infrastructure etc. which benefit us all. It's those last minute add-ons to omnibus spending bills just to pander to a small group which we could all do without.

It's the corporate welfare freely given to, say, exxon who are showing record profits which, because of the corporate welfare, enables such outrageous payouts to CEO's. It's the corporations which lobby for lowered or no property tax, and who collect sales tax but are not obligated to pass it onto the governments (as per a segment on THE VIEW last week) which we protest, not taxation per say.

 

OK, I guess SS and Medicare taxes could be lumped under income tax.

I fully agree with your points on how tax money is used and don't get me even started with the current greed structure in corporates these days. I see a lot fo short term greed steps taken and ones that don't align with long term profitibility of the company, simply because the current execs get rewarded on quarterly finicials and not long term viability and profitability.

Somewhere it seems integrity has been lost for the almighty dollar (which no longer is so mighty because of this behaviour). Worst part is that the people (we) are allowing it. As a friend of mine said "US folks are being bought with cheap consumer goods, making them feel richer when it fact they are getting much poorer".