Taxes: Money well spent or wasted?
As April 15 came and passed, we were wondering how you felt about paying your taxes this year. Given all the bailout activity, and new spending matched against municipal and state cuts, we were curious if you were especially disgusted this year about paying your taxes. Or, do you view the recent government spending of taxpayer funds as responsible activity in the face of extraordinary times?Debate Topic:
Taxes
Was your tax money well spent last year or was it wasted?
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posted by The Greek | 8:54 AM
7 Comments:
Surprise Surprise! I say well-spent. I thought the bailouts were necessary to preserve American life as we know it and I was all for the Health Care Reform Bill, given my first-hand experience with the nation's poorest people.
However, once we work our way through this mess, we are going to have to buckle down and balance the budget. We need to get a handle on entitlement funding before it gets beyond control. So, we are going to have to be innovative, because we also need to keep social security and health care running. If we do not get to work on this soon, the dollar will be destroyed and the American empire concluded. God forbid. God bless America!
PISSED INTO THE WIND! JP MORGAN got to daytrade all day long with free money from the discount window. It's back to the Casino's for the banks. There was no lesson taught except that connections are all that matter, not risk management. Moral Hazard? F it! Keep the punch bowl filled.
All we've taught young Americans is too spend spend spend. Live beyond your means---it's your American Duty. We pissed taxpayer money into the wind to keep Mortgage Owners in their homes they didn't belong in, then we did a 180 less than a year later, and paid Mortgage Owners to accept a short sale, and we'll pay you $3,000 to move, after we blew $80 Billion and you till defaulted.
Our leadership is dangerous and stupid.
I hear you Uncle, but we did not teach America to spend spend spend, because we're punishing people now. Though, to me, the Goldman Sachs charge looks like a slap on the wrist.
Toyota is paying $16 million, but that's nothing for TM. You're right that we pissed into the wind, but if we didn't, the Gods of financial mayhem were going to piss on us. Better a little of our own than God piss! ;)
Anyway, people are going to prison now. Did you see the hearing a couple weeks ago? The team at WaMu is in deep.. The same is coming for the rating agencies. This Goldman dude is finished. I think Ken Lewis and John Thain might still see some time.
Obama is making up Financial Responsibility Fees that will not get passed, but the message is we're not going to let you do this to us again. They might break up the banks' activities; that they'll get passed I think.
In short, we held our noses and did what we had to, or else we would all be lined up for cheese and talking about how we should have let the government just bail 'em out. Now is the time to teach lessons, not then.
In the mid-Atlantic there is lots of infrastructure repairs, replacements, and improvements underway. The farms look good.
Many folks are still jobless and are losing their homes. More is needed for keeping them in their homes. Fannie, Freddie, to-big-to-fail banks, and the Feds should be doing more.
Many of those people mortaged too much for too big a house, but the choice is in helping them work it out or having the house sit empty while familis cycle through homeless shelters, imo.
I thought it was well spent also but now am concerned that money will be returned before we the people can make a profit on it. We should be charging exhorbitant interest perhaps like some of the banks.
Winter,
I believe the gov't is trying to do more to keep people in their homes. States are passing laws for this purpose, and unemployment extensions must be helping those folks too, except where they need to adjust their lifestyle to fit their new income level. I think the government has done a lot.
As far as money wasted, I think that $300 check the government issued everyone under the Bush Administration was wasted taxpayer funds. That was pissing into the wind Uncle. Everybody got a check who pays taxes and not everybody needed that money.
I think the 4.5% of Americans who were unemployed before the crisis, and have not been included in the benefits extension are really hurting by now in this environment. That's where that money should have gone! It still can.
Tom,
You're right about that. The banks starting paying off their debts once their CEOs understood they would not get bonuses otherwise. So, who do the CEOs represent then, their shareholders or their own interests? It was ridiculous how fast they started paying money back once pressure was turned on executive compensation. But the capital markets gave them the money they sought to raise, and shareholders were screwed over by dilution.
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