Filing taxes, just a little late...
I'm finally getting around to my 2006 taxes today. I'm late, I know. But I'm filing. I had to wait til my hangover cleared; it's been a few months. No expectation of a refund, either, but that's good as it means I've got my deductions organized correctly on the paycheck withholding.At right, a sticker from some pissed off Canadians. I didn't know Canadians ever got pissed off, but apparently they do, at least about bicycle taxes. Whatever they are.
Thanks to the IRS and the goddamm Feds, I'm looking forward to continuing to fund the Iraq war, the Department of Education, the NEA, and that other most useful of institutions, Public Radio. Speaking of: with nine brazillion choices now available over the air, via satellite, and on the Internet--how retarded is it that we still have public radio? What a waste of money, space, and time.
posted by Nigel St.John Regina Smegmatica Howle-Raines @ 6:56 AM
7 Comments:
I've got to disagree. I am totally pro public radio and television. I like the dulcet tones, the info and the lack of commercials.
And education --- sorry, Smegs, but methinks life in a big city full of illiterate and uneducated kids with nowhere to go all day would be a very, VERY dangerous place to live. Iraq costs more than all of those things combined anyways. However, it does seem that those of us who aren't brazillionaires get saddled with a grossly unfair share of the tax burden.
Also, are you sure your getting all of your deductions? I'm pretty sure you can claim your boozing under out-of-pocket healthcare. Did you save your receipts?
La Sirena--we're going to agree to disagree on this.
Education is a states issue (if it isn't, then why do people move locally to get into better school districts--and if it were indeed Federal, then all schools would be identical--right?) So why have a Federal Department of Education? Return that money locally and give people a choice -- magnet schools, charter schools, vouchers for private schools.
I'm really biased about NPR. Having worked for years in commercial radio, I know for a FACT how much money those people waste over at public radio. Example: the same programming that requires 30 seconds of credits on NPR, due to the sheer number of producers and assistant producers and editors and associate editors and writers (listen to the credits next time you're sampling one of their shows) is accomplished in commercial radio by one or two people at the most.
I do indeed save my boozing receipts. When I go on complete liver disability I'll be able to back up my Medicare claims! HAH!
OOhh... I wasn't trying to be snarky about the booze receipts, merely practical and creative.
And I will agree that anytime federal funding is involved there are a ton more positions created to do the same amount of work. I see it in clinical research, as well. A very smart woman pointed out to me that all government budgets should have to start at zero and not at what they spent last year.
(But I still like not listening to commercials.)
I like public radio myself. I particularly enjoyed NPR's Blues After Midnight (I think that's what it was called). Ya can't find that shit anywhere.
A college station here used to do a 4hr blues radio show on Sundays, but then cut it back to like 2hrs. I emailed a "WTF" gram to them but got no reply. A second email yielded similar results. Now I don't listen to 'em at all.
Nigel,
I wrote you a long and thoughtful comment. Blogspot refused to publish it.
I wrote you a short one just saying hello. Blogspot refused again..
gRRRRRRRRRRRRRR ! mAYBE THIS THIRD TIME WILL WORK.
that reminds me, I have to mail my own tax return. oh, fuck me...
B-O
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oh, Canadians can get REAL pissed off, eh?
you know, it's just like they say...
... well, no, I guess they don't say anything about that after all, do they?
oh, my.
"ybkqxu"
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La Sirena: No worries, you weren't being snarky! I appreciate the comments. And you're 100% right about zero-based budgeting. That'd be a good start. The feds build in automatic increases every year based on inflation and anticipated new expenses--they don't account for this as a budget increase for that line item, believe it or not. So just sitting still, with no "new spending", the federal budget HAS to increase year on year by at least 4%. It's all good for a laugh here, dontcha think?
Carlos: Thanks for weighing in. I used to like my local public radio station because it was the only place to hear classical music, which I happen to absolutely love. Now they've replaced all that with talk shows. If I wanted to listen to talk shows, I'd listen to that boob Hannity (dipshit humungosity that he is)!
Annie: sorry el blogspot doesn't seem to like your comments? I love 'em.
Dr. Chip: File away, buddy!
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