Are You Part of the 96%?
This past Tuesday morning the Freshmen Republican delegates held a press conference in the halls of the State House to announce the results of a Gonzoles Poll commissioned by them. The one question asked was (and I may be paraphrasing):
"Do you feel you are paying too much in taxes, enough, or not enough to the State of Maryland?"
The result of the poll was, very simply, that only 4% of you feel you don't pay enough. I'd love to know who those people are because I have some tax obligations of my own I'd love to have help with!
Some of the items on O'Malley's list are: A 15 cent increase on a gallon of gasoline (over a three year period); the so-called flush tax will triple from $2.50 to $7.50 on your water bill; the 6% sales tax on internet sales; a tax increase on "smokeless tobacco".
In addiiton to all this, O'Malley is proposing to phase out personal exemptions for folks making more than $100,000 per year and capping income tax deductions. This would include your mortgage deductions. Why bother owning a home?
How do you feel about the amount of taxes you and your family pay?
John Thomas
12:46 pm on Sunday, January 29, 2012
Is that families making more than $100K or individuals making more than $100K ?
cynthia
9:19 am on Monday, January 30, 2012
Yes, we are paying too much in taxes. All levels of government need to STOP creating new spending and trim all other spending. It is quite simple, in our household if we do not have our own money to buy it, we don't purchase it. We do not have the mentality of, we will purchase it and then require someone else to pay for it. This is how our government functions.
Rusty Vaughan
10:50 am on Tuesday, January 31, 2012
I may fall in the 96%. I feel I am a realist. If the question is do I want to pay less in taxes, my answer would be yes. BUT, if I were submitted a line item budget, what Items would I delete in order to prevent a tax increase... Hmmm. I suspect that would be very difficult. It is easy to say no or to demand decrease but it is not very responsible without suggesting how. What services would YOU give up?
Amy Leahy
8:49 pm on Wednesday, February 1, 2012
I would give up the sidewalks- to- no-where the state has been building on Ritchie Highway for the past several months, for starters. Rusty you would be amazed at the level of misuse that occurs within government. A line item budget is simply a guide…the reality of how the money gets spent is highway robbery and we are the victims.
Rusty Vaughan
1:15 pm on Thursday, February 2, 2012
I would not be amazed. BUT, rhetoric serves no purpose and without specifics it is only rhetoric. OK, let's identify that sidewalk that is planned and not built. Let's identify the costs associated with it and the reason it is being built. We can then determine the savings and make a step toward real cost cutting. Would it trim $10,000 off the budget, $100,000, $1 Million? Let's catch the spending in the proposal stages and cut specifics. Denying all spending is just not helpful. Surely you can do better than a sidewalk.
John Thomas
6:54 pm on Tuesday, January 31, 2012
How much does the state or counties spend on paying for teacher's pensions ? do teachers put money in to a 401k or do they just get pensions after they retire ? How many jobs hand out pensions nowadays ?
cynthia
8:35 pm on Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Services that I would be willing to give up, unemployment benefits, food stamps,
section 8 housing, medicaid, medicare for starters. I have never had the benefit of any
of these. Also, social security. I have always had savings accounts since I was in high
school. My parents taught me self reliance.
John Thomas
9:12 am on Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Taxing individuals who make $100K or more per year is not a bad idea because they are rich anyways.
cynthia
9:18 am on Wednesday, February 1, 2012
An individual making $100K or more per year is not rich. Are you kidding?
John Thomas
9:47 am on Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Individuals who make more than $100K are rich because the average person in AA county only makes $40K per year according to US census data. These $100K people can buy a condo instead of a house. They can skip buying internet and cable tv because its not a necessity. They can skip buying a smartphone and buy a cheap cell phone instead. They can buy a cheap car instead of a fancy one. They can have one child instead of several. They can learn that life is not all about gimme gimme gimme. $100K is more than enough for one person to live on.