Okay, let's talk taxes.
The only reason I really care about this fundraising crap of late, is that Clinton & the DNC are clearly the most guilty of it. I'm so tired of hearing about how the GOP outraises the DNC by 2x, so they have to do everything within the confines of law to fundraise. Give me a break. Are you going to tell me that the outright wrong and biased info that is dispelled my the media daily doesn't compensate for that difference? Not the mention that the liberal messages are so much easier to transmit: it's easy to say that we need to spend on this, spend on that, prioritize that, but it's really hard to sell conservative solutions because they don't sound as appealing on the surface. The knee-jerk reaction is almost ALWAYS a liberal solution (i.e., give 'em more to make it right). Usually it takes some thought to reach a conservative solution. And that's apparently something a little too tough for about 49.5% of the electorate.
But that's not what I wanted to talk about. Taxes. There's this thing called the "marriage penalty." If you make more than about $55K and are married, you should know what it is. My wife and I are paying $2,000+ more in tax than if we were single and filing separately. Yet another way that the government eeks out more bucks from what they term "the rich." I assure you, we aint.
How about the AMT? Take a look at that sucker. If your deductions are too big relative to your income, then whammo you pay the alternative minimum tax anyway. That effectively wipes out your deductions and raises your taxes. No big deal now, you say? Well, it's not indexed for inflation. By the year 2000, in '97 dollars, you'll need as little as $85K in income to hit the AMT if you own a home. It's a HUGE built-in tax increase.
How about the $25,000 passive loss exclusion? If you buy a home, rent it out, and it results in a loss rather than income, you get to write up to $25,000 off of your income. Nice! BUT, not if you make more than $100,000. It starts phasing out at that level and goes to $0 at $150,000. Another evil tax increase hidden into the law.
How about cap gains not being indexed for inflation? Buy XYZ corp for 100, hold it a year and sell at 103. You pay tax on the $3 gain, even though after inflation you had no gain. The government LOVES that. That makes a big difference over longer investment horizons, especially with real estate that isn't subject to the deferral rule.
Enough. I'm sick to my stomach now. |
